South Park High
by motherofdragons329
Summary: "In that moment, he realized he was in love with her. He always had been, from the moment he first saw her in kindergarten. ..Seeing her get into the song and completely give herself to the song made him shiver. He wanted to tell her how beautiful he found her, how much he loved her, how amazing she was without altering herself at all"
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Wendy collected her books from her locker and walked to math, her favorite class. On the way, she started talking with Red and Lola, two good friends she had made during high school. Neither of them were extremely good looking or popular, but they were very nice girls who shared similar interests with Wendy.

Wendy had come into her own during high school. She was the president of student council, as well as the strongest competitor on the school's math team. Throughout all these commitments, she also managed to keep up top grades as well as adhering to a strict fitness routine that left her next to no free time. She was quite beautiful, with flowing black hair that went past her shoulders and dark brown eyes, not to mention a banging figure. Everyone knew who Wendy was and got along with her pretty well, even though she did not attend many of the social events others were known to frequent in high school.

Oh, and she was dating the star of their conference champion track team, Stan Marsh.

Stan joined track when he tried out for football and didn't make it. This seemingly bad thing turned out to be a blessing in disguise. He was a natural at track, making it to the national conference when he was a freshmen and setting school records at every turn. At first, the guys on the football team would give him a hard time for not making the team, but after seeing the level of success he had with track, they respected him and got along very well. He was invited to every party, and many girls were interested in him. This caused quite a few girls to be severely jealous of Wendy, as well as Stan to get a bit of a swelled head.

"Wendy, did you go over the problem set from last practice yet? It was nearly impossible!" Red exclaimed, referring to their math team practice on Tuesday.

"Yeah Red, it wasn't so bad. I can work through them with you tomorrow after our history test. You need to know factorials really well for our next competition!" Wendy was very dedicated to doing well in math team. She was determined to get their team to compete at a state level, which was quite difficult in South Park, where people know more about Kimye than calculus.

"Oh hi Stan!" Wendy smiled as she kissed her longtime boyfriend Stan in the hallway.

"Hey Wendy, you're coming to the meet tonight right?" Stan looked his girlfriend up and down admiringly. They may have grown apart a bit due to differences in interests, but she looked better and better each day.

"Of course Stan! But I'm gonna be late, I will talk to you later!" Wendy smiled at Stan as she walked away.

"Wendy, how are you going to manage that?! That proposal for prom is due tomorrow as well as our history exam! Are you sure you can just go to a track meet?" Lola was worried that Wendy might be piling on too much. Sure she could handle a lot but still!

"I'll be fine Lola! Anyway it's Stan; how could I not support him?"

"How many times has he shown up to a math competition? Or ran with you in the mornings? I know you always ask him to….." Lola didn't really approve of Wendy's relationship with Stan, although she tried to hide it most of the time.

"Oh hush Lola" Wendy rolled her eyes as they walked into class. "You know Stan can't do two workouts a day or else he risks hurting himself! Although it would be nice to have someone to run with….one of you should join me!"

"Hah, fat chance of that" Red snorted.

Wendy didn't notice, but someone else heard her wish for someone to run with her in the mornings before school.


	2. Chapter 2

Forgot to mention I do not own South Park or any of the characters associated with it

Chapter 2

As soon as Wendy sat down, her entire focus was on math. It was her favorite class. While some of her classmates were chatting idly, she was reviewing last weeks notes. Math team was her favorite organization she was involved in, so she needed to keep her skills sharp for that as well.

Someone eyed Wendy from the other side of the room. She was so cute when she was focused her schoolwork, he thought dreamily. Well, he knew that she needed a running buddy. Maybe he would meet up with her accidentally tomorrow.

"Bebe! How was your weekend?" Wendy smiled a she greeted her best friend in the hallway. Even though the girls had grown apart during high school, they managed to maintain their friendship.

"Wendy! Kyle's party was so fun, you should have tried to make it out! I missed you there" Bebe pouted at Wendy. She was on the cheer team and spent most of her time hanging out with people from there. Partying was one of Bebe's favorite parts of high school, and she wished Wendy would come out more as well.

The girls continued to chat about menial things as they walked to lunch. When they approached the cafeteria, Wendy walked with Bebe up to a table with Heidi, Nicole, Rebecca, Kyle, Stan, Kenny and Cartman. Heidi and Nicole were always on cheerleading, and they took to it quite naturally in high school as well. Rebecca had outgrown her awkward phase and become quite a pretty girl; however she was quite insecure and tried to overcome it through being petty toward other girls. Kyle was an average player on the schools varsity basketball team, but he really loved school and was second in grades only to Wendy. His favorite class was AP Literature, and he could often be seen reading a book while walking through the hallway. Cartman had grown a bit and gained muscle; he played varsity football. Having an outlet for his rage seemed to be good for him. He was still prone to outbursts but none as extreme as before. Kenny wasn't really into any sports at all; he just wanted to sit with the hottest girls at school. He was a bit of a player, and had a reputation for it around school.

"Hi everyone!" Wendy said with a smile and gave Stan a kiss. "I will see you guys later!" She walked off to sit with some students in student council and math team. Even though Bebe was her best friend, Stan was her bf, and the fact she had known most of those people since kindergarten, she never quite felt comfortable sitting with them. There was always a sinking feeling in the back of her had that they were pissed she was sitting with them. She shook that feeling off; why was she so paranoid all the time? Her eyes traveled around the cafeteria as she walked back to her table. They were drawn to one table with Craig Tucker, Token Black, Tweek Tweak, Clyde Donovan, and some others. Those students were very interested in music, playing both in music class as well as in a band. Craig was especially talented; he could play 4 different instruments and wasn't a bad singer. Wendy didn't know that though. Craig preferred to keep that information to himself and did not broadcast his talents. Craig looked up to make eye contact with Wendy, and she thought to herself, Wow I never noticed how handsome he is! The thought made her blush furiously, and she lowered her eyes and hurried back to her table. Craig noticed her blush and looked away with a small smile and a blush of his own.

Back at her boyfriend's table, Wendy's suspicions of not being welcome were confirmed. As soon as she left Rebecca started rolling her eyes and making rude comments about her.

"Did you see she wasn't wearing any makeup at all? Really, I get she's busy but if you can't make time to take care of yourself, you're doing something wrong." Secretly Rebecca was jealous how Wendy could still look pretty with no makeup, not to mention she had a big crush on Stan.

"Please Rebecca, drop it" Bebe rolled her eyes and turned to Nicole to talk about her new outfit. Rebecca was not daunted and turned instead to Heidi to continue complaining about Wendy and other girls, something Heidi enjoyed as well.

Meanwhile, Stan could not be bothered to defend Wendy. He ignored Rebecca's comment like he usually did and instead talked to Cartman. Ever since he had gotten in shape and started doing sports, they found they had a lot more in common.

"ARGH Goddamn it Stan why won't you help me with my homework! I know you're good at this sort of thing!"

Stan actually was pretty good at school, especially math, although not as good as Wendy. She constantly tried to get him to join math team with her but he refused over and over again. Secretly, he did not want to be associated with academic clubs at all since he saw them as being too nerdy. That was one reason he was sort of relived Wendy didn't want to sit with him at lunch. He liked her a lot, but thought some separation was better for their relationship and his reputation.

"Don't ask me me, fatass" Stan said absentmindedly. "Kyle, will you put that book away and just talk to us instead? God"

Wendy signed as she flipped through her notes at the track meet. God knows she was swamped with work! She could probably do well enough on this exam, but she needed to get an A. History was a difficult class for her, but she refused to let it lower her GPA. She wished she could talk to Stan about this sort of thing, but she knew he was busy with his own problems and didn't want to make things worse for him. Lola and Red didn't want to join her as they were just as overwhelmed as him. She would have preferred to have some company, but things don't always work out how you would want them to, she thought to herself. Suddenly, she was irritated with Stan for not attending her math team events.

"Next up, 400 meter dash!"

The voice on the intercom said cheerfully. That was Stan's event. Wendy forgot her anger momentarily.

"Oh yay! Go Stan!" Wendy yelled, putting down her papers for a bit.

Stan ended up winning like usual, and Wendy cheered with everyone else. She came up to Stan afterwards and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek.

"Congrats babe! I am so proud of you" She said sincerely.

"Thanks Wendy, I am so glad you could come" Stan smiled warmly at her, and glanced at the books in her arms. "Were you paying attention to my race?"

"Of course! Track meets are just very long and I was utilizing my time inbetween. We have the history test tomorrow! Come over and study with me, I work better with other people."

"Aw Wendy, you know we always do something fun after the meets. Can't I just read your notes tomorrow before school?"

"Sure, I guess that's fine" Wendy sighed internally. "Have fun, Stan"

As soon as she got home, Wendy studied for four more hours until she passed out on her desk


	3. Chapter 3

Hello, in case you haven't figured it out yet, this is my first piece. I thought it would be a fun creative writing exercise for me, and I really love stories that focus on Wendy and Craig. So hope you enjoy!

Chapter 3

Stan was having a great time at Cartman's party. Sure, it was a weekend, but you gotta celebrate the small things in life, right? He laughed as he made a shot in beer pong.

"Nice Cartman! I guess those football skills came in handy" Cartman had just made the final shot in beer pong.

"Yeah Kenny, chug that beer bitch!" Cartman yelled. He had turned into a party animal since his mother really didn't care what went on in his house. Having such an outlet for all his energy really made him a better person. Sure, he could still be an asshole but the evil pranks had come to an end.

"Wooyeah, free beer bitches!" Kenny had inherited his parent's love for alcohol, but not their addiction. "Kyle you've been slacking in this game, seriously! I had to carry us through this!"

"Come on Kenny I did great" Kyle slurred. He was a bit of a lightweight and tended to get drunk quickly.

"Kyle you asshole" Stan laughed and grabbed his friend. "We have an exam tomorrow and you're drunk as fuck!"

"Shuttup Stan" Kyle stumbled over to the bathroom to throw up.

"Wow Stan, you're really good at beer pong!" Rebecca sidled up to Stan and smiled. "You should teach me how to do it!"

"Can't be taught, Rebecca. Its natural talent" Stan smiled back at Rebecca and checked her out. He could be loyal to Wendy and appreciate Rebecca's crop top at the same time. Besides, the attention was great.

Bebe walked in, giggling with Nicole. They had gotten pretty close from cheerleading and both bonded over their issues with guys. Cartman saw her come in and walked over to her.

"Hey Bebe, you're looking pretty hot today. Why don't we go up to my bedroom? You can give me a bj" Cartman wasn't quit used to hitting on women but he tried. Bebe gave him the nastiest look and walked out of the room, with Nicole following as Kenny, Kyle and Stan roared in laughter.

In the 4th grade, Cartman told Bebe to meet him outside of the school. Bebe has a weird thing where she only liked guys after she knew one of her friends liked him. She didn't try to do it! It just happened. Anyway she had bit of a crush on Cartman at the time and agreed to meet him. When she arrived, Cartman started sweet-talking her like he was good at.

"Hey Bebe, I really don't think I have ever seen you looking so beautiful!"

Bebe blushed as she looked at him.

"No really Bebe, I think this may be the best you have ever looked! We're growing up now, do you know what beautiful girls are supposed to do"

"No, what is it Cartman?" Bebe asked. She was pretty excited and thought that Cartman would ask her to be his girlfriend, or even better, to kiss her!

"Well Bebe, the prettiest girls are supposed to go up to guys, kiss them a lot, then put their wieners in their mouths!" After saying this, Cartman took his pants down and looked at her expectantly.

"Ew Cartman, no way!" Bebe shouted as she backed away. "What is wrong with you!"

Bebe ran out, so embarrassed by what had happened. Cartman was also embarrassed, as he had bet Kyle that he would get a blow job before him. He decided he would just lie about it. Soon, the whole school thought Bebe was a slut and that she had given Cartman a blowjob behind the school. No one believed her side of the story, and she was always thought of as a slut.

As a result, Bebe was kind of nervous around guys. She was scarred from that experience. She would flirt around guys quite a bit but she never had a boyfriend before. In fact, she never even hooked up with a guy before. Wendy was the only one that believed her.

Since Bebe left, she didn't even notice Stan continuing to talk to Rebecca, otherwise she would have been angry and probably told Wendy.

Clyde shot Bebe a look as she left, looking disappointed. He was on track as well, and he had a crush on her for quite a while. Token noticed his look and couldn't help but snicker. Sure, Clyde was his friend, but it was obvious to most people that Bebe liked Kyle. Which was funny in its own way.

Normally, Craig would have joined his friends at a party, however he had gone to sleep early to prepare for the next morning.

The Next Day

It was about five in the morning and Craig had reached Wendy's street. He wasn't exactly sure where or when she went on her morning runs, so he figured this was a pretty good place to start. He paced nervously. Craig wasn't much of a runner.

"Crap, I am going to suck at this and she will think I am a frickin idiot. Maybe I should just go home" Craig mumbled to himself and almost turned to leave.

"Craig Tucker? I didn't realize you went on runs in the morning!" Wendy jogged up to Craig and he blushed, trying not to look at her too closely. She ran in the morning in a sports bra and jogging pants, showing off her figure. It was almost too much for him to take.

"Oh uh hey Wendy. Yeah I usually do" Craig looked away from her as he answered.

"Lets go together! I usually wrap around Stark's Pond, hit the base of the mountains, and run past the west side of town."

"Holy crap, isn't that like 6 miles?" Craig was starting to wonder if he thought this through. He didn't know that Wendy was such a serious runner. However this was the first time he had really spent time with her, so it would be worth the pain.

"Yeah! If its too much we can try a different route.."

"No, that is great. Lets go!" Craig tried to feign some enthusiasm, and it seemed like Wendy believed him. At the end of the run, he was wheezing and gasping for air while Wendy was relatively fine. I never realized she was so fit, he thought admiringly as he snuck a quick peek at her while she took a drink of water.

"That was fun Craig! We should meet up tomorrow as well. Want to leave for school with me? I need to go in early to review a proposal for prom. I 'm not the worlds greatest writer, so it's probably in shambles" Wendy admitted as she wiped sweat from her forehead.

"Prom proposal? But homecoming hasn't even happened yet" Craig gave her a half smile; he knew Wendy was a huge overachiever.

"Oh shut up" she said laughing. "If you wrote as slowly as I did you would need the extra time as well! Anyway I should probably go shower, want me to pick you up for school?" Wendy was thrilled someone was actually awake to run with and take the early pilgrimage to school with. She was used to spending her mornings alone and this was a nice change of pace! She didn't know Craig very well admittedly, but she was open to being friends with anyone.

"Oh yeah, that's fine" Craig knew that he was coming off like an idiot, but he couldn't help himself. He was getting a ride to school with Wendy Testaburger!

At School

Wendy scrolled through the document, tounge slightly out. Writing was not a natural skill for her like math, and she know her paper was very plain.

"Here, let me see" Craig grabbed her laptop and skimmed the document.

"It's a bit …dry"

"Oh, don't try to be nice Craig. I know its horrible" Wendy moaned. "Its not a hard deadline at all, I just don't like to let down the student council. I told them today and I wanted it to be today. Its just so rushed…."

"Give me some time to work on it" Craig read through the document for a long time, then suddenly started typing rapidly. They only had about 45 minutes before school started, so he was trying to do it as quickly as possible. I never noticed how nice his hands are…she thought to herself.

"Done." Craig shoved the laptop back to her.

"With 15 minutes to spare? Nice" Wendy shot him a smile that he nervously returned. She read through the document for a few minutes, almost in shock.

"Craig, where did you learn to write this well? Why don't you do this in English class?" Wendy did you really fucking say that. Really. Like the guy helps you out and you basically call him lazy.

"I like writing some stuff on my own time" Craig shifted a bit in his chair, not used to the attention. He wrote songs in his spare time, although no one really knew that.

"I don't know why. I guess I don't really care about it"

"Oh Craig you have to let me see! And you should care, just see English class as a way to practice. Actually I really shouldn't speak on this subject; I am not creative in the slightest" Wendy laughed a bit, but she truly was upset about that. Her brain worked in a highly rational and logical manner; she was not capable of producing art or expressing herself fluidly.

"Here, I know how I can make it up to you!"


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

"Lets meet here again during lunch! I can help you study for history."

"What?" Craig had something else on his mind.

"Just come to the library during lunch; after working with me I can at least guarantee a b"

"Alright, sounds good. I will meet you then" Craig shrugged his backpack on and went to class.

Later that day

"Wait Wendy why would you study with Craig? You know he isn't a very good student…." Lola was telling the truth. Although Craig was in all honors classes, he pulled about a C average in all of them. Except for his music classes where he got A's (but Lola or Wendy didn't know about that)

"Lola, he is actually pretty smart. I think he just doesn't apply himself" Wendy said.

"Really Wendy, that's even worse. I think Lola is right, he's probably just trying to mooch off you" Red said earnestly. She was trying to hint at all the times Wendy "helped" Stan study for history (that was their only class together) when all he did was copy her notes.

"You guys don't even know him" Wendy huffed. "We're going to study together and I am still going to do fine! By the way, don't forget we have math team against West Park tonight!"

"Alright" Lola sighed. "See you later Wendy!"

During Lunch

"….and the annexation of Texas was one of the key tenants he ran his campaign on , causing him to win despite being a dark horse in the competition. He led the countries efforts in the Mexican-American war…" Wendy was completely involved in teaching Craig all the material that was going to be on the exam. To his credit, Craig was taking careful notes and interrupting Wendy with questions every now and then.

"Wait, was that when the Alamo took place?" Craig carefully looked through his notes to see if Wendy had already answered this question. It was true that Wendy's sweet voice made the passage of time much more interesting to him than it normally would be, however the main purpose for his intense note taking was so he wouldn't sneak glances as Wendy. When she was concentrating on something, she had a look of rapt attention on her face that was quite captivating.

"No, that was Jackson. That event kind of sparked the interest of the American people in winning Texas from the Mexicans. Anyway…."

After School

Before the math team competition, Wendy had a quick student council meeting.

"Ok everyone, I just wrote up the prom proposal. It's on file but for now I would really like to discuss Homecoming a bit more. Michael, how are you doing on decorations?"

Wendy really didn't understand why the goth chose to join StuCo, but that didn't matter. He seemed pretty interested in helping actually.

"Yeah about that….I decided that an autumn theme was too mainstream. I decided to go with Halloween instead."

"What!" Shreiked Wendy. "Michael, we already agreed…"

"Yeah well I think a Halloween party is really what these people need to get themselves going. You know, girls in skimpy costumes, punch, satanic rituatals….."

Some of the other students started murmuring in agreement. Wendy was starting to panic; she felt she was losing control of the situation.

"Michael, homecoming is in a WEEK….you need to return those decorations immediately! For some people this is their last homecoming! They don't want to see satan and scary stuff, they want a nice experience!"

"Well you're gonna have to figure that out yourself. WE are setting up for a Halloween theme." Michael crossed his arms in finality.

Wendy desperately checked her watch. She needed to jump on the bus to her Math Team competition.

"Ok, we will talk about this later" She said exhaustedly. She ran out of the room.

Wendy, Lola, Red, Butters, and Kevin Stoley were on a bus to their math team competition. Only 5 people were allowed to compete for points, and they were known to have the highest combined scores. Oh, and they were the only 5 people on math team.

Wendy calculated, using the other teams average scores, that if she got a perfect each time, Red and Lola got 7 correct between them (including 1 of the hardest problems), Butters got 3 easy problems right, and Kevin got the hardest one correct each time, they would have a high enough scores to make it to state. So far, they had made it each time, with some minor alterations between teammates. Wendy was confident they would be able to do it again.

"Well guys lets do this! Remember we are on the road to make it to state; the first time South Park will EVER make it!" This was probably going to be the highlight of Wendy's junior year

After the competition

"Jeez that was hard" Wendy muttered. "I am not quite sure how I did on that"

"Aw shucks Wendy, I am sure you did fine!" It was always easy for Butters to be optimistic. "Oh hey Eric! I'm glad you could come!"

Wendy looked on in disbelief as Eric Cartman walked up to them.

"Butters you're such a fag. Why are you on math team again?" Cartman rolled his eyes.

"Aw Eric were gonna make it to finals! I'm gonna get a medal for the first time in my life!"

"Yeah whatever" Cartman sighed and looked at his nails, while Butters looked on disappointed.

Really? Cartman comes to math competetions to support Butters and Stan won't come for me? REALLY? That was almost too much for Wendy to handle. It really pushed her over the edge when she saw the solution sheet to the problems.

"I only got four right…" Wendy read through the solutions. "Damnit I made the stupidest mistake."

"Forgot to cube the side length?" Red asked knowingly.

"Yes. Oh fuck me, please say one of you picked up an extra question"

"Nope Wendy, we all did what we were supposed to…" Kevin seemed a bit nervous to tell her that.

"Oh God, how could this possibly get any worse?!" Wendys frustration was at a height. What had started off as such a good morning just went to shit.

"Wendy, don't beat yourself up" Lola put her arm around Wendy. "It's not such a bit deal, we will make up the points at the next competition."

"Well I wont…." Kevin stuttered. "I didn't want to tell you this, but I'm moving to North Park Wendy. I won't be able to compete anymore"

"And now I need to find a replacement!" Wendy could have cried.

"Woah calm down hoe!" Cartman moved a bit closer to Butters, remembering what happened the last time she got very angry. Wendy didn't notice though. She simply walked out of the room; her frustration was mounting and she needed an outlet. She pulled out her phone to call Stan.

"Hi Stan its me…I have had the worst day today, can I meet up with you?"

"Oh I don't know Wendy, why don't you meet up with Craig instead?"

"What? What are you talking about?"

"Wendy, I know you didn't meet with me today because you were too busy hanging out with Craig! You know I need your notes so I can keep up my GPA for track! Would you rather I failed everything?"

"Ok Stan you're being dramatic. I am sorry I didn't meet you when I said I would, but you used Kyle's notes so that's not even a big deal! And you should take your own notes anyway!"

"Wendy I am sorry. I can't talk to you right now."

There was a click as Stan hung up.

Wendy stopped walking and just sat down in the street and cried.


	5. Chapter 5

Two chapters in one day, I am being so good! :D I could just see this part kind of vividly so I wanted to just write it all out, and I figured I would just upload it as well. It gets a bit sappy at points so just enjoy and sorry if its silly :p Please review! First fan fic and I would love any feedback I could get.

Also I don't own South Park.

Chapter 5

Eventually Wendy made it back home. She did not have the energy to deal with anything and immediately fell asleep. At least I will have a nice run in the morning. she thought to herself before she drifted asleep.

Wendy woke up before her alarm from going to bed so early. She got dressed and walked outside, to see Craig.

"You ready to go or what?" Craig said, stretching in an exaggerated way.

"Yeah sure" Wendy giggled. At least she could depend on these runs in the morning.

They went on their way, not speaking to each other. It was a comfortable silence though; Craig was getting into a rhythm and was becoming a better runner.

At the end of the run, Wendy started walking inside.

"See you at school Craig".

"No. We're not going to school today."

"….really Craig. Ill see you later"

"No Wendy, I am serious. Grab your jacket and let's go. You need this"

Wendy just noticed Craig had his backpack on the side of the road.

"Well, I need to shower and get ready and everything…"

"Nope no time, just go as you are"

Wendy grumbled a bit but she decided to just roll with it. She was stressed and angry, and how much trouble could she get in for missing one day of school?

She headed out following Craig. She didn't even think to ask where he was taking her; honestly she didn't care. Craig was quiet and didn't want to fight with her or contradict her, which was enough for her at this moment. They walked through the woods, past any area Wendy had ever known. Soon, they came upon an old building.

"We're here" Craig said, and opened the door and walked in.

Wendy gasped as she looked around. She was standing in a decrepit but beautiful music hall. She admired the tapestry; it was eaten away by moths but she could tell it used to be quite grand. It was a small theater; it probably had 300 seats in it. She saw Craig sitting down and getting more comfortable. He obviously had come here many times.

"This must be 100 years old Craig! How did you ever find this?"

"Exploring. This is where I come when I want to be alone. I thought you might need to come here." Craig was a bit nervous to show Wendy his secret spot, but something inside of him gave him confidence this was what she needed.

"Wow, the acoustics are amazing" Wendy breathed as she went up on the stage. She could hear her voice echo across the entire hall. She looked at Craig sitting in the audience. "Can you hear me?"

"Perfectly"

Wendy felt light, like she was floating. Amazing to think not 12 hours ago she was crying she was so stressed. She could almost watch herself let go of all the stressors in her life. Suddenly, the urge to sing bubbled up inside of her. Wendy never sang except in the shower, but she felt inside she could sing here anytime.

"Let it go, let it go. Can't hold it back anymore…."

Wendy was so engrossed in her singing and the feelings she had that she forgot Craig was in the room with her. She pulled her hair out of her bun mid-song and let it free. After puberty, Wendy's hair changed from straight to wild curls. Normally she straightened her hair every day, but today she didn't have time. She was not dressed up or wearing makeup, she was in her natural, raw, state and she loved it.

Craig watched her from the stands and felt his heart soar. In that moment, he realized he was in love with her. He always had been, from the moment he first saw her in kindergarten. He had a flashback to that time, seeing her and not really knowing how to deal with his feelings, so he simply ignored her and all other girls up until high school. Seeing her get into the song and completely give herself to the song made him shiver. He wanted to tell her how beautiful he found her, how much he loved her, how amazing she was without altering herself at all He opened his mouth after she finished her song, chest heaving with emotion.

"Wrong key."

"What?" Of all the things Craig Tucker could have said to her at that moment, that was something she did not expect to hear.

"You sang that in the wrong key to avoid the lower part in the beginning. It should sound like this." Craig joined her on the stage and pulled a harmonica out of his pocket.

"You keep that on you?"

"Yeah its good luck." He grinned at her. "Here, try it like this." He played the first few bars of the song and looked at her expectantly to sing. They went through the song that way.

"See, you are able to be much stronger at the high points. Its better this way."

"I can't believe I just sang halfway decently! I have no sense of music. It's not really what I was good at."

"Don't say that Wendy. " Craig looked at her seriously. "When you put yourself down, you limit yourself and accept less than you deserve. Everyone has different strengths."

Wendy was silent for a bit. "Craig, you should use your own advice".

"What?"

"You could do much better at school, Craig. Use the skills you have in other parts of your life and use them to help educate yourself. Not everyone learns the same way. If you can help me with my proposal, why couldn't you write an essay?"

Craig was silent. Wendy felt that he probably wasn't going to say anything else.

"Can you sing for me, Craig?"

"Not now."

"Oh, come on Craig."

"No, its not the time."

"Well, can you play another song for me?"

Craig didn't say anything. His heart was pounding in his chest after the serious conversation he had with Wendy. She had showed him a very vulnerable part of herself through music, he felt he should do the same. Even though it was a small part.

He put the harmonica to his mouth and began to play. Craig was a different person when he played the harmonica. His eyes closed and his body became softer.

Wendy gasped. Goosebumps ran up her arms and tears came to her eyes. The haunting melody of the song gave her the shivers. It was almost like she was hearing a small piece of Craig's soul.

After he finished, he opened his eyes and returned to his normal stature. He looked at Wendy, secretly pleased to see her so emotional. Music was how he connected with people, and he felt today he had made a real connection with the girl he loved.

"What song was that?" She asked with tears in her eyes.

" Killing Me Softly. Its about a woman who is moved by a handsome young man who is singing."

"Oh shut up Craig" Wendy said laughing, wiping her eyes.

"No, really" He smiled. The moment was over but he would treasure it forever.

They laughed and continued to talk about small things until lunch rolled around. Craig pulled some sandwiches out of his backpack. He had remembered that Wendy liked peanut butter and banana, but he played it off.

"This is all I had in my house, I know it sucks." He said offhandedly.

"No Craig, I love this! Thank you so much!" Wendy beamed at him. "This has been a really great day honestly. I am so glad we are friends."

It didn't bother Craig that Wendy only thought of him as a friend. He felt somewhere inside that eventually they would be together. This just wasn't the right time.


	6. Chapter 6

So I don't own South Park or anything at all. Also sorry I didn't do this before but thank you to KennyDiedAgain and IronSeal for their kind words this chapter is a bit weak admittedly but next chapter will be far more interesting I promise!

Chapter 6

Wendy walked home from her day with Craig. As soon as she left the music hall, reality came crashing down on her and she was already stressed out. When she approached her home, she noticed Stan outside.

Oh great, I don't want to deal with another fight now, she thought to herself. As she got closer, she noticed he was holding a boquet of roses.

"Stan?" Wendy was genuinely confused why he was there. Didn't he just say he was extremely pissed off at her yesterday?

"Wendy, I'm sorry about what I said yesterday. I was just stressed and taking it out on you. Go to Homecoming with me?" Stan shot her a small smile. Honestly, he was feeling quite guilty about hanging up on her yesterday. He was a bit selfish, but not a bad guy.

"Oh Stan, of course I will!" Wendy smiled and threw her arms around Stan. A small nagging voice in the back of her head asked if he even noticed that she was gone yesterday, but she quickly banished it and told herself to just enjoy the moment.

"I can't wait to pick out a dress!"

"Well about that….can you get a green one? My dad really wants me to wear his old shirt.."

Oh boy, Wendy thought to herself.

"Well sure Stan that's not such a big deal."

"I've got to head off to practice, I will catch you later sweetheart."

Stan gave her a kiss on the head and walked away. Excitedly, Wendy pulled out her phone and texted Bebe.

Stan just asked me to homecoming! Lets go shopping today

Yay! ru gonna ask red & lola?

I don't want them to feel bad since they don't have dates….

Doesn't mean they won't like shopping! Bring them!

Ok I will pick you up in 10!

Soon Wendy, Bebe, Red, and Lola were all in Wendy's car. Bebe was gushing over how Stan had asked Wendy to homecoming.

"A dozen red roses! That is so romantic Wendy; you are so lucky to be dating Stan! Hopefully one day me and Kyle will be like that"

Wendy couldn't help but laugh, Bebe could be so goofy and full of energy it was contagious. Red and Lola didn't seem to feel the same way though, they both rolled their eyes at Bebe. They used to be such good friends with her. It seemed odd to them now. Wendy noticed this and sighed to herself. She had wondered how combining two very different sets of friends would go. In the end, Bebe would win them over, she knew it.

"Lola, what do you think of this one?" Wendy had grabbed a long green dress with sleeves.

"….Wendy you can't be serious! Are you trying to look like my grandmother."

At first Wendy was shocked, but soon she and Lola were breaking down with laughter.

"Why are you looking at green dresses any Wendy? I thought you would choose purple" Bebe herself was looking for a blue dress to bring out her eyes; she knew they were one of her best features.

"Well, Stan already has a green shirt so I am shopping to match him…"

"Wendy that is ridiculous." Red crossed her arms. "Everyone knows the girl picks out her dress and the boy has to match."

"She's right you know" Bebe nodded wisely as she shifted through racks of dresses. Red seemed pleased that someone was agreeing with her.

"Well its his father's shirt. I think it would be ok this one time. Besides, the green will bring out the green in my eyes…" Wendy sounded a bit doubtful as she grabbed another green dress.

Bebe rolled her eyes at Red and Lola. Wendy's eyes were pure brown and she seemed to have a difficult time adjusting to that. Bebe suspected that Stan preferred colored eyes, and that was why he tried to bring out the "green" in Wendy's eyes. She wisely said nothing, but handed Wendy a short green dress.

"This is perfect for you Wendy. Try this on"

Wendy stepped out of the dressing room, twirling around in her dress. It was a short green dress that had rousing up the side. It was perfect for her; she looked incredibly hot in it.

"Hey Bebe, want to help us pick out dresses as well?" Red wanted to look as good as Wendy did as well. She had almost forgotten that Bebe was almost as knowledgeable as the magazines when it came to fashion.

Bebe's eyes lit up. She knew a fun makeover when she saw one. The blue dress she picked out for herself was perfect. She spent the rest of the time picking out dresses for Red and Lola, and they helping them choose accessories.

"I can't believe I only spent $150 on everything for homecoming total! When did you become such a smart shopper Bebe?!"

"After I learned that I don't have any money" Bebe laughed. She loved shopping, and found ways to do it that helped her pocked more cash.

Wendy smiled to herself. Sure, it wasn't the exact dress she would have picked for herself without the color, but she felt confident in it.

"Ok Wendy, we are all meeting at your place to get ready, right?"

"Yep of course!" Wendy was so excited for homecoming. With a jolt she remembered the possibility of a Halloween theme. She pushed that thought out of her head. There was plenty of time to worry about that later.

The weekend went by like a blur. On Monday, she woke up for her run to see Craig waiting for her.

"You're late Testaburger" he teased her. Craig was actually impressed with the gains he had made running with Wendy. He still couldn't quite keep up with her, but he felt healthier and stronger than he ever had before.

"Sorry Craig, I have been stressing out about something recently" she sighed as she tied her hair back.

"What's up? I thought Stan asked you to homecoming just like you wanted." Craig said this as emotionless as possible, but underneath his cold exterior he winced a bit saying those words out loud.

"Well yes but that isn't what I was worried about!" She blushed for some reason. "Theres a possibility that homecoming might have a …Halloween theme."

"That sounds awesome! Why are you so worried?" Craig genuinely thought it would be a lot more fun that way.

"I know a lot of girls want it to be nice and cute, they might be upset by sucha dramatic change in theme from previous years…"

"You mean Rebecca?" Craig snorted. "You know Wendy, the ENTIRE student body is yours. Everyone has different likes and dislikes, but you need to do things for the majority of the people, not just the assholes on top who make their voices the loudest."

That hit a very real truth for Wendy. Was she simply trying to please Stan's friends so she could fit in with them? Now that she thought of it, the students at their school would probably have a lot of fun with a Halloween theme.

"You're right Craig. I just worry about Stan liking it…" She could barely believe she had told him that.

"He's your boyfriend. If it makes you happy, it should make him happy."

"Thanks for talking with me Craig, it means a lot to me" She shot him a smile and his knees buckled. He didn't let it show though, he just gave her a small half smile.

"Let's go"


	7. Chapter 7

Just wanted to say a quick thank you to supernerd38 for your kind review :) also I do not own anything from South Park

Chapter 7

Wendy mentally prepared herself as she walked into the student council meeting. She saw the other members look at her defiantly. They were still standing up for their theme.

"Ok guys, I spent a lot of time thinking about it and I think you're right."

"Really?" Michael was pretty surprised Wendy had given in so easily. She was not known for giving up.

"Yes, you guys are right. It would be an awesome theme." She smiled at him, which confused him even more. The point was that she was supposed to hate it and fight it the entire time.

Goddamn it, now I actually have to spend time decorating and doing shit for this, Michael thought to himself.

"So as long as we can get decorations in order, it should be perfect" Wendy felt relieved for how well that had gone.

The rest of the week went by quickly. It was just a combination of runs, homework, and talking about homecoming. Red was very excited, as she had a huge crush on Tweek Tweak and he was going to homecoming without a date as well. Although she had no experience with boys, she couldn't help but hope something would happen with him. Wendy and Lola both knew about this, but recently she shared her secret with Bebe as they were getting ready for homecoming!

"Red, you can't just hook up with him at homecoming! There needs to be an established pattern of flirting. It's not like in the movies where the guy randomly realizes he loves the girl after they have never spoken before" Bebe said matter of factly. In fact, she was no expert at all, but she spoke with enough confidence to convince the other girls.

"Really? So do you think I should try to talk to him tonight then" Red asked as she curled her hair in Wendys bedroom.

"Absolutely but NOT on your own. Wendy is friend's with Craig now, when she goes over to say hi we can all go. That was you aren't giving him too much attention so he wont get too ahead of himself."

Wendy was happy her friends were getting along so well. Bebe had brought Nicole over to get ready with them as well, and Wendy was surprised to see she was just as nice as Wendy remembered her being.

"So Nicole, what about you and Token? I always thought you guys were going to get back together." Lola was enjoying hanging out with the other girls as well. It was not very easy for her to make new friends, so she was very grateful to Wendy for inviting them over.

"No, that happened years ago. I was actually thinking about trying to hook up with Clyde. I've had a bit of a crush on him for a while." Nicole said coolly. She never showed too much emotion, which is why she and Bebe got along so well. They were complete opposites.

Wendy smirked a bit and shot a look in Bebe's direction. She seemed quite surprised at this information; she even stopped applying her mascara to stare at Nicole in shock. She knows exactly what she is doing, Wendy thought to herself. She wondered if Nicole was trying to push Bebe in the direction of Clyde because she liked Clyde, or if she knew something else about him.

Soon, the boys showed up. Stan, Kyle, Cartman, and Kenny arrived, with Stan and Kyle holding corsages.

"Wendy you look gorgeous" Stan drew Wendy close and gave her a quick kiss on the mouth. He pulled out a green flower and placed it on her wrist while her mother took pictures.

"This is just too precious Wendy!' Her mother crooned, snapping pictures left and right. "Now put the flower in his jacket."

Wendy rolled her eyes at Stan while smiling a bit. Her mothers behavior did not bother her too much, but it could get annoying after a while. As she was attaching the flower, she noticed that Stan's green shirt looked very nice. And quite new.

"Stan, this shirt is brand new. You still have the tags on it" She reached behind him to pull the tags off his shirt. "This isn't your fathers shirt is it?"

"Wendy, don't try to start a fight" Stan sighed. "I want this to be a nice night"

Wendy fumed silently. Why would he lie to her about something so trivial? If he wanted to wear green, she would have been more than open to it. But it really wasn't something to make a fight over, Stan was right.

Meanwhile, Bebe was giggling as Kyle attached the baby blue flower to her wrist. Instead of looking at Bebe though, he glanced at Cartman quickly, who was just chatting idly with Kenny, Lola and Red. Lola was smiling and laughing with Kenny; it seemed like he had found someone new to flirt with. They look so beautiful, Wendy thought to herself. Most of the time, Red and Lola did not spend too much time taking care of themselves. But when they put some effort into their appearance, they looked absolutely gorgeous.

"Girls, lets get a picture" Wendy smiled and went to Red and Lola. "You both look so beautiful".

The girls took all sorts of pictures with each other. The guys kind of rolled their eyes and just stood where the girls told them to. Taking pictures was part of the female experience of homecoming, and since they went with a group of girls they knew it was coming. Heidi and Rebecca showed up just as they were getting ready to leave.

"Hey you guys can't leave yet! We need to take pictures too" Rebecca pouted.

Wendy was not in the mood to fight with anyone today. "Alright" she sighed. "We can line up again"

But Rebecca ignored her. "Stan we match! Isn't that funny." Rebecca was wearing a green dress as well, but hers was a deeper green, and had a larger plunge in the front.

"That's fine with me" Stan grinned, looking her up and down. "Let's take some pictures"

Wendy couldn't believe what she just saw; did Stan really just check out Rebecca right in front of her?

As soon as she and Stan got in his car, she wanted to talk about it. They were the only ones in that car anyway; Lola and Red were going with Cartman and Kenny since they all didn't have dates. Wendy had an inkling feeling that Lola might get along with Kenny, and it seemed to be accurate so far.

"Stan, why would you check out Rebecca right in front of me? That is just rude" Wendy said it as calmly as possible but she was furious.

'Geez Wendy chill, we're just close friends." Stan rolled his eyes. "You always get so jealous."

"It's not that I am jealous that you are friends. I just don't know why you would be friends with someone who hates me and flirts with you all the time."

"Well you're friends with Craig aren't you" Stan glanced at Wendy as she blushed guiltily. "I know you've been running with him in the mornings. If you can have a guy friend that doesn't like me, why can't I have a girl friend who doesn't like you?"

"Craig doesn't dislike you…"Wendy actually wasn't very sure about that, they hardly talked about Stan when they were together. "Maybe you're right Stan. Let's not fight now, I want this to be a fun night.

Stan didn't say anything and just drove them to the dance in silence.

"What the hell is that?!" Rebecca shrieked as Butters ran past her dressed up as Dracula.

"Hey Wendy, this is great!" Butters shot her a wide smile, complete with fangs and all. "I'm so glad I finally get to go do a Halloween party! I've never been invited to one before."

"I'm happy you're having such a good time Butters. You should thank Michael, it was his idea."

And he certainly had done a great job. The cafeteria looked more like a haunted bog than anything else. There was dry ice everywhere, creating an airy and haunting look. Half of the people were dressed in Halloween costumes, and half of them were dressed up in traditional homecoming garb. The decorations were ridiculously scary and everyone seemed to be having a great time. Well almost everyone.

"Wendy why the hell would you approve this? Its awful!" Heidi gave the decorations a disapproving look. "It's supposed to be a magical night" Heidi was extra annoyed since she had a crush on Kenny, and he seemed to be paying Lola more attention than her.

"I think its great. And everyone seems to be having a great time." Wendy defended the homecoming she helped create. Soon, they started playing a slow song.

"Stan, this is our song!" Wendy cried and dragged him onto the dance floor.

Stan rolled his eyes to Cartman, who snickered. Wendy had decided that their song was I Swear by All-4-One. Her musical knowledge might be limited, but when it came to 90's boybands, it was a different story. N'Sync, Backstreet Boys, 98 degrees, O-town, she could not get enough of them and knew every word to every song.

She looked up at Stan, who looked down at her and gave her a brief smile. She buried her head into her shoulder and when she looked up, she saw Craig looking at her.

_And though I'll make mistakes, I'll never break your heart._

They sustained eye contact for a while, until she blushed and broke it. She felt something more powerful in that look than she had felt in Stan's arms in a while.

Craig was also affected by their eye contact. His heart felt like it was breaking, watching them dance together. But once Wendy looked up at him and didn't look away, a single lyric resonated through his head:

_Yes I've gotta have faith._

There wasn't much time to focus on that reflection however; shortly after there was a slight disturbance on the dance floor. Cartman was holding Butters as they rocked together, a slight smile on his face. She turned to Stan, whose shocked expression mirrored hers. Kyle was also watching, but his face was distorted in rage. He walked away from Bebe as she looked on hurt, and tore them apart and argued with Cartman over something. Bebe started to tear up and ran to the bathroom. It was clear to everyone what was happening now.

"Stan I have to go talk to Bebe now" Stan nodded, still watching his friends argue on the dance floor.

Wendy ran into the bathroom where Bebe was sobbing. "Bebe, are you ok?"

"Do I look ok Wendy?!" Bebe cried. "I was a beard! That's all I ever meant to him! Obviously Kyle was just trying to make Cartman jealous!" she shouted and burst into even more tears.

"Aw Bebe, its alright, I know it hurts now but you will feel better in a bit. Soon you won't even remember Kyle"

"I'm not super upset about Kyle, to be honest" Bebe hiccupped. "I mean, I liked him but not a lot, like you like Stan. I'm just mostly embarrassed and hurt that I was used. It's probably my fault that I rushed into it anyway"

"No Bebe don't say that" Wendy said firmly. "When a guy treats you badly it isn't your fault. The only think you can do is change how you react to it" For some reason, that resonated in her, but she set that thought aside for now.

She and Bebe just continued to have girl talk in the bathroom for a long while, until Bebe had fixed her makeup enough to feel comfortable to leave. Bebe ran up to Nicole and they hugged, they got back to talking. Nothing could hold Bebe down for too long.

"Did everything go alright in there" Craig came around the corner.

"Oh Craig you scared me!" Wendy jumped. "Yes it's alright. We spent most of homecoming in there, but that's what you do for your best friend, right."

"Of course"

_I don't want another pretty face,_

_I don't want just anyone to hold, _

_I don't want my love to go to waste, _

_I want you and your beautiful soul_

Only someone with a truly beautiful soul would spend her time in the bathroom during a party she spend months planning, he thought to herself. He decided to add that track to the playlist he intended to make for Wendy one day, along with the famous George Michael song. She seemed like she would like those sorts of songs.

As they walked back in, people were getting ready to leave the dance.

"Damn, we must have spent hours talking. I didn't even notice."

"Wendy lets go!" Stan yelled impatiently. "Afterparty is at Kyle's house now"

"Are you coming?" She turned to Craig.

"I'll probably show up at some point" He said calmly. Of course he was going to go. Wendy didn't realize, but while she was in the bathroom with Bebe, Rebecca had taken advantage of the situation to dance with Stan. They even sneaked away for a bit to take some shots. Craig wanted to make sure nothing funny happened at the party. He probably should have told Wendy at that moment, but he couldn't stand to hurt her if there was nothing behind his accusation.

"Alright see you!" She ran off to meet Stan. Homecoming was very interesting so far. Hopefully she would be able to have a bit more fun at Kyles.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Wendy walked out to the car with Stan.

"Wendy, whyre u with Craig" he slurred.

"Stan are you drunk?" Wendy sighed. She didn't really want to deal with a drunk boyfriend at the moment but she guessed it was his homecoming too. She didn't really expect him to just sit around while she was with Bebe anyway.

"Here, give me your keys. I will drive us to Kyles."

"Wendyareugonnadrink" Damn, he must have taken quite a few shots.

"No, I don't really feel comfortable doing that yet"

Stan sort of laughed at her, which annoyed her a bit.

"Wendy, I love you. You're so cute" He kissed her on the neck and she giggled, appreciating the attention. Stan usually wasn't so sweet to her.

"Ok, we are here!" She wasn't sure why, but she felt like she was going to have a good time tonight.

"Wendy!" Lola ran up to her, slightly drunk. "Wendy I kissed Kenny!" it was her first kiss.

"Lola!" Wendy was shocked. "Good for you! Just be careful; Kenny is known for taking advantage of girls!" She secretly hoped that Lola wouldn't look too far into it. Red ran up to her as well and they laughed, just talking about Lola's experience and having a good time. Stan seemed to get bored of the conversation and dragged Wendy to the dance floor. She shot a surprised look to her friends but went along with him. He pulled her right to the middle of the dance floor, turned her around, and started to grind on her. People in the crowd were whistling, and Stan gave her a hard push so she was bending over and shoving her ass directly into him.

"Stan what are you doing" Wendy hissed, straightening herself up. Stan knew she hated dancing like this; she found it so degrading.

"Come on Wendy, stop being such a prude" Stan roughly grabbed her again, almost causing her to fall over.

Craig was talking with his friends in the corner, every so often glancing at Wendy. When he saw how rough Stan was with Wendy, his eyes lit up at this.

_Do you feel like a man, when you push her around?_

He did not interfere; he didn't want Wendy to think he didn't see her as capable of standing up for herself. Clyde meanwhile saw none of this; he was looking around excitedly for Bebe. The events from homecoming had lead several people to believe that Bebe Stevens was single, which drew her quite a few more looks than it normally would have.

"Stan, I really don't like this!" Wendy ran to get away from him, going into the kitchen. She found Red in there, nervously trying to talk to Tweek. She wasn't doing a very good job though; Tweek was on the other side of the house.

"Wendy, what's wrong? You look upset" Red could see the embarrassment all over Wendy's face, she was an open book.

"It's Stan. Things just haven't felt right recently. And now he just humiliated me in front of everyone….I love him but I don't know if I can accept that treatment…"

"Wendy!" Lola screeched, looking for her friend. "Wendy come out here right now"

Wendy ran out looking for Lola, concerned that she was hurt or something. She turned to the dance floor and she saw it.

Stan.

Stan and Rebecca.

Her shirt was off, revealing a sexy green bra (she must have changed before coming here, Wendy wildly thought, looking at her own dress in embarrassment). Stan was really going to town on her, sloppily kissing her and letting his hands go everywhere they wanted. Some people had whispered and turned to look at her, but she didn't have it in her to confront him. She silently left the room, tears streaming down her face. Before she left, she got a glimpse of Craig pulling Stan from Rebecca and punching him squarely in the jaw.

"Wendy!" Red, Lola, Bebe, and Nicole had ran out after her.

"You guys don't have to come with me" Wendy hiccupped through tears. "I know you guys were having fun, I don't want to ruin your time."

"How can we have fun when our friend has been hurt by her ASSHOLE boyfriend" Bebe cradled Wendy's head in her arms as she sobbed.

The door to the house burst open. Craig Tucker walked out, his lip cut and bleeding.

"Craig! What happened to you?" Wendy gasped between her tears.

"Not important" said Craig. He looked at her tear stained face, with her running mascara. He felt anger rise up in him again and felt no small satisfaction from giving Stan the black eye he would be sporting in class tomorrow.

"I'll give you guys a ride home" He unlocked his car and all the girls piled in.

The car was mostly silent besides Wendy's sniffles. One by one, each girl got off, gave Wendy a hug goodnight and promised to meet her tomorrow. Until only Wendy was left.

Craig got out of his car and walked Wendy to the door.

"Are you going to be alright? Do you need anything from me?" What a stupid question. Of course she wasn't alright, and clearly he couldn't do anything to help her.

"No Craig" She sniffled. "We can still go on our run tomorrow right?"

"Wouldn't dream of missing it."

Wendy suddenly ran into Craig and pulled him into a big hug. Surprised he hugged her back, loving the warmth that rose up in him at this unexpected gesture. This time no lyrics ran through his head, but instead the flurry of emotion he experienced brought up a few lines of a classical song he loved. It expressed the anger, love and sadness perfectly. I'll have to play that for her one day, he thought to himself.

Wordlessly, Wendy detached herself from Craig and went inside her house.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Wendy woke up earlier than usual on Saturday morning. For one brief shining moment, she had forgotten the events of last night. Then it all came crashing down on her. Her boyfriend of seven years had cheated on her last night. She buried her head in her pillow and allowed herself 10 minutes to cry as much as she wanted.

There, now I won't have to shed another tear for him ever again.

Wendy was determined to be strong and not let Stan see how much he hurt her. She was not going to beg him to take her back or try to analyze the situation with him. It would be better worth my time to just start the moving on process, she thought to herself.

After finishing up some final tears for Stan, Wendy got ready for her run. She smiled to see Craig bent over tying his shoes.

"Ready to go Craig? I've got an extra hard route picked out for this morning" She grinned wickedly.

Craig groaned but offered no additional complaint. He simply picked up a pace behind Wendy and continued the run.

He certainly has gotten better, Wendy thought to herself. She pushed herself extra hard this morning; the physical pain she would feel later would help relieve the stress other events had put on her.

At the end, Craig saw Wendy bent over, heaving. She had finished far before him, and she looked like she was going to vomit from running so hard.

"Wendy!" Craig jogged to her side. "Are you alright?"

Wendy started to sob again and buried her head in his chest.

"Craig I promised I wouldn't cry for him again but I can't help it." Wendy couldn't show her face, she was so ashamed of her emotional outburst.

"Healing doesn't just happen overnight. You are human. It just takes time. You need to be willing to wait." I know I am.

_I'm the one who wants to be with you_

_Deep inside I hope you feel it too_

_Waited on a line of greens and blues_

_Just to be the next to be with you_

Wendy sniffled and dried the last of her tears. " Have you been heart broken before, Craig?"

"Yes" Most of my life.

Wendy could tell from his tone she was not going to get too much out of him.

"I think it's time for me to go. I will see you later Craig."

"See ya." Craig watched her as she walked away. Wish I could do something to make her feel better, but she just needs to be alone I think. Craig's thoughts drifted off to someone else who needed him as he walked away.

Wendy was determined to have a successful and productive day. She told all her friends that she was fine, really!, and just wanted to spend the day alone. They begrudgingly accepted that, although Bebe almost went over anyway, convinced Wendy was just saying that to seem like she was strong. At first, Wendy was doing pretty well at distracting herself. She finished all her homework and projects, and even started practicing for the next math competition. Her phone was turned off next to her; Stan had been calling and texting her and she couldn't bring herself to answer. Wendy was a strong girl, but she knew if Stan apologized properly she would want to be with him again. It was probably immature to ignore him like this, but for the sake of her self respect she needed to.

Around 3 pm, she started to get bored. Crying alone in her bedroom for the rest of the day did not appeal to Wendy, so she decided to go on a walk. Let's explore a new part of town, she thought to herself.

Wendy lived in a nicer part of town. She usually did not venture too far out of her neighborhood, since there were plenty of nice parks, mountainside trails, and views for her there. Instead of walking further into nature, she walked more into the heart of town, avoiding streets that would take her to Stan's house. Eventually, she found herself taking a roundabout way to Red's house.

Maybe this is a sign that I need my friends, Wendy thought, turning down the block to take a more direct route to Red. To her left, she heard angry shouting and crashing.

What the hell is that? Wendy walked closer in the direction, and saw that the sound was coming out of a small white house.

"Get out of here you fucking asshole! We don't want you here and we never have! We are better off without you!" Wendy gasped as a fat balding blonde man stumbled out of the house. He looked slightly beat up. Turning back to the house, he screamed "FUCK YOU TOO! Jesus Christ how does anyone deal with living with whiny assholes." He noticed Wendy standing there.

"The fuck are you staring at bitch?" he slurred as he walked past her towards his car. This man is drunk, Wendy thought frantically, at 3 pm on Saturday! She was too afraid to tell him not to drive though; she turned in the opposite direction and ran towards Red's house. Before she left, she caught a glimpse of Craig looking out the window at the man, then his eyes briefly rested on her. His face was beaten and bloody; a black eye was already forming.

Embarrassed, Wendy ducked and walked away quickly. What the hell was she doing snooping like this anyway? She heard the sound of a girl crying as she walked away. Wendy started to cry a bit as well. Was that what Craig's home life was like? Is this why he could have outbursts of violence, like his attack on Stan? (Which she hated to admit, but she was kind of angry with him over that)

Wendy had found her way to Red's house. She knocked on the door, to be let in by Red's mother. She had heard what happened with Stan and called Red down right away. For the rest of the night, the two girls analyzed every detail and interaction she and Stan had in the past few months to see if this could have been predicted. Although Wendy found the girl talk to be refreshing, her thoughts kept wandering to Craig's bloodied face in the window. She shivered; the most disconcerting thing about the image was the dead look in his eyes.

Sunday came and went. On Monday, Wendy woke up for her typical morning run with Craig. When she saw him, she almost gasped. His lip, which had been healing from when Stan hit him, had been reopened and was as bloody as before. He also had a shiny black eye, and some assorted bruises along his face. She wanted to ask him what was wrong, but the look he gave her was enough to silence her. Their run started silently and ended that way; Craig did not even say goodbye as he walked away to get ready for school.

Wendy sighed as she went in to take a shower, trying to put off how awkward and difficult school would be. She really hoped Stan did not try to talk to her; it would be so embarrassing if she were to break down in school. Wendy took a deep breath and walked out to her car.

It was before first period. Craig was standing with Token, Clyde, and Tweek, who were looking over Token's shoulder at a playlist he had made.

"I was just in the mood for a mowtown/metal mix, so I just threw some of these songs together.."

Craig was not participating in the conversation. When he walked up to them, they were curious about his appearance as well, but one look from him convinced them it was better not to ask. They knew better than that.

As Craig half listened to his friends, he couldn't help but think of Wendy's scared face as she looked at him from the sidewalk on Saturday. Why, why why of all people did Wendy Testaburger have to see him at his absolute weakest, his most broken? He groaned internally. Things were going so well with them as well. She probably wants to talk about what happened, Craig panicked to himself. Talking about feelings was not a strong suit of his. What was the best way to avoid this? Well, if he surprised Wendy, she probably wouldn't think to ask it. How would he do that…..?

Soon, classes started. The day went by, and Craig ended up in his history class.

"Sorry about the exams being handed back so late, I was just so busy with things last week….." Ms. Johnson was a nice enough teacher, but she could get super distracted sometimes.

"Craig good job, this may be your best work yet" She beamed as she handed Craig his exam.

B+?! That was easily the highest grade he had gotten on a history exam! For a second he felt a flare of pride in his academic performance, something he had never felt before. Wow, I can actually do well in school, he smiled to himself. Craig's father often told him he was stupid when he was younger, to the point where he had internalized it and believed it himself. Take that you fat fucking bastard. Craig smirked and flashed his exam at Wendy. She looked at the grade, smiled at him, and mouthed I told you.

Well, if I can do well in this, why not other things?

Lunch rolled around quickly. This was what Wendy was most nervous about. Bebe, Red, Lola, and Nicole all sat with her to show some support.

Stan was watching Wendy from his table. Rebecca had assumed that they were dating and was hanging on his arm, laughing at something Eric had said. Kyle was glaring at Cartman, who was holding hands with Butters under the table.

What the hell did I do? Stan wondered as he looked at Wendy. Occasionally, one of the girls would look up at him and shoot him a dirty look,, as if telling him to stay the fuck away from her. No, I have got to go talk to her. I at least have to apologize, I owe her that. Stan stood up to talk to Wendy, but instead of walking over, he stared as Craig, Token, Tweek, and Clyde all walked over to join her. Infuriated, he glared at Craig. He never liked him; they feuded a lot when they were younger.

'Wow Stan, you got him worse than I remember" Rebecca giggled. It was true that Craig's face looked much worse than Stan's. Rebecca turned and started gossiping to Heidi about how awful Red's pink sweater was with her hair.

"Wendy, are you still looking for an extra person for math team?" Wow, Craig will never stop surprising me, Wendy thought as she watched Craig take the seat across from her.

"Yeah, I do actually" Lola raised her eyebrows at Wendy, not subtly hinting that she did not approve of the appointment Wendy was about to make. Red could not have cared less, she was blushing furiously as Tweek had sat right next to her, making her entire body turn red.

"Here Craig, lets meet up after school. I can show you what we have been working on and help you catch up."

"Awesome, sounds great." Craig looked down at his food, then across from his friend.

Jesus, I guess that's what happens when the two awkwardest people like eachother. He grinned at Wendy across the table, and she returned the smile, noticing Tweek and Red nervously try to talk to eachother.

Token noticed the interaction as well.

"Hey, are you girls busy on Saturday? We have a jazz band competition in North Park, and Tweek's got a pretty sweet drum solo. He's probably the best we've ever had"

"Gah! I wouldn't say that, I'm terrible!" Tweek was shaking from everyone looking at him, too much pressure!

"I didn't know you were in jazz band, what do you play" Nicole was surprised to learn something new about Token. She thought he was pretty boring, and that she knew him fairly well.

"You have to show up to find out." Token winked at Nicole, and to her surprise she found herself blushing!

"We will be there!" Bebe smiled, she could see the tension between her friends and some of the dudes! She was never one to pass up an opportunity to hook up some of her friends.

The bell rung and people started standing up. Wendy gathered her books and walked out with Red and Craig to their Spanish class. Jazz band and math tutoring? That should make for a fun week. At least it was enough to distract her from Stan, who thankfully did not talk to her at all in school.


	10. Chapter 10

Sorry about the long updates, I had an exam so I had been focused on that! this chapter is kinda long to make up for it! Thanks for the reviews again! I do not own south park at all.

Chapter 10

"Ok, so probability is what we are going to focus on for now. How much do you know about probability? Or factorials?"

"Um..nothin. I think you need to start from the top. "

Wendy didn't mind. She patiently went through, explaining the basic principles behind everything. Math had never appealed to Craig when taught in class; it always seemed so mechanical, as if the professor was just reading equations off a slide with no real understanding of what it was. But Wendy's explanation made math seem so much more fluid and creative.

"…so if you know these basic definitions and principles, you can apply it to a variety of problems. Do you get it?"

"Actually yeah I do. This is the best I have ever understood math. You should be a teacher."

Wendy blushed a bit to herself. The thought of being a teacher had crossed her mind before, but she never took it seriously. She didn't see her self as being good at relating to children, hell she could barely relate to people her own age. That's why Stan cheated on her, didn't he?

"I'm not surprised you're getting better so quickly Craig, you know they say people who are good at music tend to be good at math. It's the same part of the brain."

"Then why don't you play music or sing?"

"I'm not sure really" Wendy admitted, doodling on her scrap paper. "I just never saw myself as that sort of person I guess."

"One day I'll teach you something."

Wendy looked up at him and smiled. "I would like that a lot Craig. That sounds like fun."

She glanced at her watch. "Shoot I didn't mean to spend so much time here! Time just flew by….want me to give you a ride home?"

"Sure" Craig gathered up his things and followed her out to her car. When they got to his house, Wendy pulled to a stop.

"Craig….is everything ok at home?" She gave him a concerned look.

Craig's stomach turned. He had been waiting for this to come up."It's fine, Wendy"

"I just worry about you Craig….you have bruises all over your face and arms"

Craig self-consciously pulled his sweater sleeves down his arms. Are the bruises that bad, or was Wendy just checking out my arms. Craig smirked a bit to himself.

"Wendy, all you need to know is my father is a selfish asshole who is gone and not coming back anytime soon." I hope. "Stop worrying about me, I'm fine now. I'm more worried about you" Shit, did he just say that out loud?

"Me?" Wendy was surprised to hear that from him.

"Yeah. You push yourself too hard."

"Craig, you know me. I have always been like that."

"No you haven't. You've been running until you puke, you look like you never sleep. You are seriously too stressed out."

"I'm trying to get into a good college, Craig." Wendy snapped at him, not sure where her sudden irritation came from. "I need to do all of those things to get a scholarship."

"Alright" Craig didn't really feel like having an emotional conversation anyway. "See you Wendy."

"Bye." Craig had gathered up his things and left. Wendy groaned and hit her head on the steering wheel. Why did she feel the need to shut Craig out? He was obviously trying to make her feel better and she was just rude. Well, I'll worry about that later. There's still so much to do before our next math competition….wait who is that?

Stan was standing outside her house. Wendy mentally prepared herself, she had been expecting something like this to happen. She pulled into the driveway and stepped out of her car.

"I would prefer if you left now" her voice faltered with the last word. Shit Wendy show some conviction.

"Wendy, we have to talk" Stan looked at her with pleading eyes. Wendy looked at his eyes, she used to love the sharp blue color but now it just seemed cold and uninviting to her.

"Stan I have nothing to say to you. Please leave" Wendy was happy to see some strength return to her voice.

"Wendy we dated for years! How can you let it end like this without even talking to me? Just let me say what I need to say"

"Stan I don't want to hear anything you need to say!" Wendy said shrilly. " You broke my heart. Apparently our long relationship didn't mean too much to you. Just go date Rebecca and leave me alone."

"Wendy….please…."

"I mean it Stan!" Wendy was full on crying now. She knew deep down she didn't really mean it, and Stan probably did as well.

"Alright Wendy, goodbye then. I'm sorry for hurting you." Stan knew Wendy well enough to see he could get her back. He wasn't a bad guy, so he decided to respect Wendy's wishes and leave her alone for now. She'll come back after she has some time to heal, he thought to himself.

Crying, Wendy ran inside and threw herself on her bed. Its over now. Officially.

She and Stan had broken up before, but there was a sort of finality in it now.

I wish I wasn't such a crybaby. Wendy wiped away some tears out of her eyes.

Its over. You're not getting back with him again. The thought brought a pang to her heart, but not as strong as it had been before. Time heals all wounds.

Soon it was Thursday after school. The week had passed by uneventfully. Wendy tutored Craig every day after school and ran with him every morning to help prepare for the math competition. Stan and Rebecca had became an item, something the entire school was gossiping about. Wendy did her best to ignore it, but it still stung seeing Rebecca all over Stan. It seemed to her like he wasn't as into Rebecca as she was into him, but she quickly pushed those thoughts out of her head. It doesn't matter anyway, we are through.

"Ok, is everyone here?" Wendy counted through the juniors. Red, Lola, Butters, and Cartman were on the bus. Craig walked on the bus right before it was going to leave. Wendy breathed a sigh of relief.

"Ok, we have all our competetiors here….wait Cartman why are you here again?"

"Ay! I can go where I want! It's a free country!" Butters pulled on Eric's arm and whispered something to him, trying to get him to calm down.

"Whatever" Wendy rolled her eyes but she was actually quite nervous. This meet would determine if they were able to make it to state. In order to qualify, they had to win this competition. Wendy needed a perfect, Red and Lola needed 5 between them, Butters needed 3 (More than he had ever gotten!) and Craig needed just one question. He had learned a lot recently, but Wendy still worried about him.

She sat down next to Craig. The bus rides were always the most fun part. To relax, they usually would play some sort of game. Lola pulled out her pink DS.

"Who wants to play Mario Kart? I've got dibs on Peach!"

"Lola you say that every time, we get it" Red rolled her eyes but eventually started laughing with her as she pulled out her DS as well.

"Oh boy! Eric I told you this is the best part of math team"

"Whatever fags, I totally own at Mario Kart" Cartman didn't seem to see the irony in calling the girls fags when he himself was dating Butters, and only came to the competition to support him.

The four of them began to play, with the girls shrieking with laughter as they destroyed the boys at the game.

Amid Cartman's screams for a rematch, Wendy whispered to Craig, "Hey, let's sit in the back of the bus"

Craigs heart fluttered for a second. "Alright, lets go"

Wendy sat with him at the back of the bus. "Craig, I know you don't really want to talk about it, but I am worried about you. Seriously. Can you please tell me what's wrong? I just want to help, you're my friend."

It felt like the bottom of Craig's stomach fell out. His first instinct was to snap at her and close off the conversation completely. As he was about to tell her to fuck off, he looked into her eyes and say genuine concern. For him. Clearly Wendy Testaburger was not one to leave well enough alone, like his other friends. He took a deep breath, trying so hard to overcome the barriers that prevented him from talking about his feelings. As he opened his mouth, he had a flashback to when he was about five years old. Some of the older kids had been picking on him, and they had broken his favorite toy rocket. He brought the rocket to his father, crying and trying to tell him what happened. His father looked at him for a second, then slapped him across the face.

"What's wrong with you boy! Are you my son or my daughter? Jesus Christ stop crying like a pussy or something! Unbelievable." His screams turned into a mutter as his attention returned to the TV, beer in hand. The memory was so vivid and harsh for him; he actually felt fear of speaking.

"I'm sorry Wendy, I really can't talk about it now" he said in a bland, emotionless voice. Damn it, I was so close that time too.

Wendy's first instinct was to keep persuading him and forcing him until he opened up to her. She could sense he was about to say what was on his mind. Something about his demeanor discouraged her though. Taking a very un-Wendy like approach, she said softly, " It's alright Craig. You can always talk to me whenever you need to though."

Returning to her usual self, she started a long and one sided conversation with Craig about how the competition could turn out, the types of problems she expected to see, etc. Craig wasn't paying very much attention to that, though. All he could think about was the moment Wendy looked at him and just softened. She was no longer the strong and sometimes intimidating girl she tried to make herself out to be, at least for one moment. He felt a surge of euphoria rush through him when she looked at him like that, almost like adrenaline. He felt the desire to reach out and touch her hair, pull her in for a kiss, but he knew that would not be received as well as he would like.

_You can't hurry love, no you'll just have to wait_

_Because love don't come easy, its just a game of give and take_

Soon they arrived at the school. As they filed in, Wendy looked around at her team. This is MY thing, and I want to make sure it goes well.

Wendy and the rest of the team came out of the test, mentally exhausted.

"I think that was the hardest one we have ever done" Wendy said warily. "but I feel good about it still. Does anyone have the results sheet?"

Soon, everyone was pouring over the answers. "Yes! I got them all right!" Wendy was feeling more optimistic than she had before, she was back! "Red, Lola, how did you guys do?"

"Great! Actually both of us got 3!" They both were beaming, this put them ahead of the curve!

"Awesome! Butters, how did you do on yours?"

"Gosh Wendy." Butters looked misrebly at her. " I only got one right this time. I made a bunch of stupid mistakes. What's wrong with me!" He looked like he was about to cry. Cartman put his arm around him and whispered something in his ear which seemed to cheer him up a bit.

Wendy closed her eyes and sighed. She had worked with Craig pretty well, but she wasn't sure if he was able to perform under the pressure of the competition.

"Craig how did you do?"

"Well…" Craig shuffled some papers around. He seemed to be killing time. Everyone looked at him anxiously, their success was dependent on him now. " I actually got 2 right."

"CRAIG!" Wendy yelled and wrapped him in a large bear hug. "WERE GOING TO STATE!"

Everyone was cheering and as excited as Wendy was. Smiling, he returned Wendy's tight hug.

This is the happiest I have ever been. And it's a result of a math competition. Who would have thought?


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Wendy walked into school on Friday with her head high. Sure, she had planned events for student council before, organized debates on political issues she was passionate about, but none of that seemed to really compare to taking South Park High to the math team state championship!

"BEBE!" Wendy yelled as she ran up to her best friend, who was talking with Nicole. "We made it to state!"

"Wow Wendy congrats!" Bebe giggled as she embraced her friend. She never understood why Wendy enjoyed doing math so much outside of class but if it made her happy that's all that matters.

"Bebe I am so happy! We have been working all year at this; I can't believe its actually happening!"

"Congrats Wendy! " Nicole smiled at Wendy, pleased to see her so excited about her accomplishments. She secretly was interested in joining math team as well, however cheerleading kept her too busy. It was nice to see the team doing well though. "I guess Craig didn't drag you guys down too badly after all."

"No." Wendy was suddenly defensive. "Actually its because of him we are going through! He worked really hard and got more right than Butters!"

"Really? That's actually pretty impressive. Sorry about that, I guess I never saw him work hard before." Nicole could be thoughtless sometimes, but she was one of those wonderful types of people who can admit when they are wrong. Bebe and Wendy are not always like that, so it was quite nice to be around someone who was.

"For some reason he doesn't try very hard in school. I think he's starting to turn that around though. Anyway, I've got to go find Red and Lola. We're still meeting up this weekend right?"

"OH yeah I forgot! We have to help Red get with Tweek!" Bebe smiled, setting up people was almost her favorite thing to do, only second to shopping. "Meet at my house before the concert so we can pick out her an outfit and make plans and everything!"

"Will do! See you girls later!" Wendy ran off; she needed to talk strategy with Lola and Red! The state competition was about a month away, right before break and finals.

Nicole looked at Bebe and raised her eyebrows. "Does she really not realize Craig is in love with her?"

Bebe smiled. "You don't know Wendy, Nicole. If the dude isn't vomiting on her she doesn't think he gives two shits about her. It's better this way though. If she knew, she would be freaking out and overthinking every interaction. She will figure out what she wants on her own; she just needs time."

Nicole just nodded and looked away from Bebe, feeling an uncharacteristic pang of jealousy. Wendy didn't even realize how good of a friend she had! Bebe knew what Wendy needed more than she did herself. Nicole thought of how odd their friendship was to begin with. Bebe and Wendy were in completely different social circles, yet they managed to keep their friendship completely intact. Hell, just them sitting together was weird. Nicole liked Wendy, Red and Lola a lot but if it weren't for Bebe, she never would have talked to them. I wonder if their friendship is really strong, or if high school is just easier than everyone makes it out to be, Nicole thought to herself. Sitting with Stan and Kyle, she felt a strong social divide, a huge sense of us vs them. When they sat with Wendy and her friends, it was just a bunch of teenagers hanging out. Maybe they all didn't dress the same or have the same interests, but they still had a good time together. It's better like that, I think.

At lunch, Craig's group of friends sat down with Wendy and her friends. It had become a new routine, which everyone was quite happy with. For the most part. Lola was slightly upset that everyone seemed to sit with the person they liked except her! She sighed and looked over at the table with Kenny, Cartman, Kyle, Butters, Stan, Rebecca, and Heidi. She really wanted to talk with him, but she would never go sit with Stan when he cheated on her best friend. I guess I will have to find another way to talk to him, she thought glumly.

"Hey Clyde, is it Scott's turn to have people over now?" Token looked towards his friend.

"Yeah, I think so. I went last time, and he usually goes right after me."

"Oh! Is Scott Malkinson having a party?!" Bebe's eyes sparked in excitement as she asked Clyde about the party. Bebe loved going to parties.

A slight flush appeared on Clyde's face, but for once in his life he was able to keep his cool. He must have borrowed a page out of Craig's book.

"Yeah Bebe it's a tradition. After each jazz band concert we have, we have a party to celebrate. It's just a lot of fun."

"Neat! So we will have something to do after." Bebe smiled at Clyde, and true to his nature, he blushed so deeply he put Red's hair to shame.

"Craig, are you in the jazz band as well?" Wendy looked across at Craig.

Token laughed. "Wendy, are you honestly surprised to hear about Craig being involved in something musical at this point? For a while it was definitely the only reason he came to school."

Craig just laughed and punched his friend on the arm. Nicole looked at Token and shot him a quick smile. He really is one to talk up his friends, I never knew that about him before.

The bell rang and they headed out of the cafeteria. Wendy picked her head up as she walked past Stan, not even giving him a side-glance. He glanced at her for a second, then almost aggressively put his arm around Rebecca, drawing her in for a kiss. She smiled and giggled, continuing to kiss him. Rebecca was not a very nice girl, but she did really like Stan. Sometimes she got self conscious that he might still like Wendy, so she tried to bash Wendy and her friends as much as she possibly could. Growing up in homeschool didn't give her very good outlets for dealing with negativity.

On Saturday, all the girls met at Bebe's place. Wendy, Lola and Red had not gone to a party since the disastrous event during Homecoming. This would also be Wendy's first concert. Red and Lola had gone to a Jonas Brothers concert when they were younger.

"It's really not that big of a deal you guys! All you have to do is pick out a cute top with jeans, cute flats, maybe wedges, makeup not too dark! It's simple really." Bebe said matter of factly as she straightened Wendy's hair.

"Ugh!" Red threw herself on Bebe's bed. " Why is this so difficult?! I seriously just want to TALK to Tweek and have a good conversation. Why is that so difficult?"

"Because Tweek shakes uncontrollably and you turn as Red as your hair when he's around" Lola explained as Nicole pulled her hair into a braid.

Wendy giggled as she put on a light shade of brown eye shadow. She never liked putting on too much makeup anyway. This would be the first time she put on makeup for a while. I forgot how fun this is.

"Well we don't want to be too late." Wendy had finished up her eyeliner and was ready to go.

"Alright, does anyone else find it funny were basically the groupies for the jazz band tonight?"

Bebe's comment elicited giggles from the rest of the girls. They spent the rest of the way there talking about the guys in jazz band, who they thought was cutest, how they couldn't believe that Scott Malkinson was throwing parties, etc. Wendy listened but didn't really participate. Thinking about it, she would have to say Craig was definitely the cutest boy in jazz band. He was getting pretty fit from running each day. To the outside observer, his face was fairly expressionless, but his dark brown eyes were definitely the windows to his soul. Wendy could tell when he was deep in thought, although it was difficult to discern the reason behind it. Adding that to the musician vibe Craig gave off made him quite attractive. He's actually really handsome; I think I would say hot even…Wait what am I even saying? Wendy blushed to herself and shook herself out of her thoughts. They had arrived at the school.

The girls filed into the auditorium giggling. Soon the audience shushed and the director came out. He started speaking but none of the girls were listening. Wendy scanned through the band, looking for Craig. She spotted him in the saxophone section, adjusting his mouthpiece. His eyes jumped around the audience, but he never made eye contact with her. He probably can't see anything from the lights, Wendy thought.

Soon, the band started to play. Wendy looked at the girls, they seemed to actually like it!

"Look at Tweek, he looks so cute!" Rebecca whispered.

I am surprised he's so good! I thought with his spazzes he wouldn't be able to keep a steady beat. To Wendy's surprise, Tweek was actually a very accurate player. His jitters even seemed to go down. I guess music is good for him.

Soon, Craig stood up and went towards the microphone. He started to play and Wendy was captivated. She never even really liked jazz, but the energy and spark Craig put into the song held her interest greatly. Craig didn't really seem like the type of person to be super expressive, but Wendy was less surprised than the other girls. She was getting to know him pretty well. The song was over, and the next one started. She glanced at her other friends in the band, Token on the Trumpet and Clyde playing trombone. I never thought I would find myself here. Wendy thought of her usual Saturday nights, studying in her room until she wanted to go to bed. This is way better! Maybe breaking up with Stan helped me become more adventurous.

After the concert was over, they met up with the boys.

"So when are we going to Scotts?! By the way you looked cute up where with your trombone." Bebe winked at Clyde who blushed furiously.

"oh, uh thanks Bebe. Yeah lets head out!"

The group piled into two cars and soon were at Scotts house. Wendy went in, feeling a bit apprehensive. Parties still weren't exactly her scene, and she was a bit nervous considering her experiences at her last party. She rejected a drink from Bebe and watched as the other girls started drinking some jungle juice and laughing with the boys. She joined in, enjoying herself to a certain extent. She smiled as she saw Red actually talking with Tweek. She seemed to have gotten some confidence from the alcohol. Wendy liked seeing her friends happy and loosening up.

"Wendy, come play beer pong with me." Craig was walking towards the beer pong table, playing against Token and Clyde.

"Craig, I don't want to drink though."

"It's fine, just play with me. I won't make you drink." Craig was a little tipsy; Wendy had not seen him like this before.

"Alright then" She giggled and took the ping pong ball. "What do I do?"

Craig slowly explained the rules for her. He was surprisingly good at the game, while Wendy was awful. They just about balanced out each other, but Clyde and Token were very good. Craig seemed to be chugging a cup of beer every few minutes.

"Craig I am sorry, I am so bad." Wendy did feel guilty for making him drink so much.

"ItsalrightWendydontworryboutit" Craig slurred, he had taken shots with Tweek right before the game, and it all had hit him. He really was not looking so good. Wendy looked on with concern. Did he always binge drink like this?

"Don't worry Wendy he gets like this a lot" Token whispered to Wendy, walking past her on his way to talk to Nicole.

"This isn't alright though…Craig I am going to take you home."

"Awesome" Craig mumbled to himself, getting into the passenger seat of his own car, handing the keys to Wendy.

The car ride was surprisingly silent, pulling up to Craig's house in a short amount of time.

"Don't make me stay here, Wendy."

"What? Why not?" Wendy looked at Craig. " I thought that things were better since your dad left."

"You could cut the tension in my house with a knife. They need me so much, its so hard. I worry about him coming back every day. He broke my collarbone in 5th grade, you know." Craig rambled on, not noticing the horrified look Wendy gave him.

"You can stay on my couch Craig, its fine." Wendy was honestly in shock Craig had told her so much. She remembered him breaking his collarbone, but he had told everyone he fell off his bike.

At Wendy's house, she prepared the couch downstairs for him. She pulled a garbage can to the side of the couch, put it on top of a towel, and got a clean blanket, sheet and pillow for Craig.

"There, now if you have to puke try to make it to the bathroom, but just in case you can go here. I left some paper towels here so if you make a mess. There's a glass of water, and if you want more the kitchen is right around the corner. " She pulled the blanket up to his chin. "There, you should be comfy now."

"Thanks Wendy" He mumbled and looked into her eyes. He felt his heart beat faster looking at her. He wanted to tell her how he felt, with her taking care of him like this. I want to take care of you. Even in his inebriated state he couldn't make the words come out.

"Wendy, I think you'd be a good mom." Craig's eyes closed and he fell fast asleep.

Wendy smiled. "Goodnight Craig." She went upstairs and told her parents she had a friend over, then took a quick shower and went to sleep.


	12. Chapter 12

Thanks for all reiews and everything I do not own south park or anything else!

Chapter 12

Craig groaned and rolled over, not quite sure about where he was. He picked up his phone : 7:03 AM.

"Jesus I should have left an hour ago." he mumbled as he jumped up. The sudden movement made him feel sick; he ran to the bathroom to puke. After he emerged, Craig looked at the couch and felt guilty. He had not puked in the living room but it was a mess since he stayed there. He spent 20 minutes straightening everything up, clumsily folding up the blankets and sheets Wendy had left for him. Craig left shortly after, sending Wendy a text.

Hey thanks 4 everything.

He paused before he hit send. Was this really the best he could do?

Yes. Craig hit send and grabbed his keys off the table to leave.

About an hour later, Wendy woke up. She looked at Craig's message on her phone.

It's alright, no big deal just glad you are feeling ok

Actually i feel like shit but nbd. do u want to do something 2night

I should study, we have a math exam next Tuesday.

ok studying sounds good to me

Craigs head was pounding but he couldn't help but smile. Who would want to study on a Saturday night? Apparently Wendy. Now time to sleep for the rest of the day.

Wendy was equally lazy the rest of the day, which was highly unlike her. When she finally made it downstairs, she saw Craig's attempt at folding up his blankets and cleaning up. She had a flash to the huge messes Stan would leave behind and shook her head. Around 3, Lola sent her a text.

Hey Wendy, what are you up to tonight?

Not too much, just cleaning up and studying for math, you?

so don't get mad but I sorta want to go to the track party…I know Kenny will be there. Will you please please go with me?

Lola if it was anything else you kno I would! But I really can't go to a party with Stan and Rebecca….

That was only partially true. Although the idea of seeing Stan with Rebecca at a party dedicated to his track excellence really was not attractive to her; she sort of wanted to stay in tonight. And study. With Craig. I really am the most boring person that has ever existed.

I know…I am sorry Wendy. I think I might be sort of desperate….

Lola don't worry! You can go with Bebe; I know they are going.

R u sure? I don't think they like me very much..

Sure they do! She will take good care of you, I promise!

Thanks Wendy, you are the best

Wendy smiled. She wasn't thrilled at the idea of one of her good friends hooking up with Stan's good friend, but if it would make Lola happy, she could find a way to get used to it.

Elsewhere in town

Stan stretched, getting ready for the final track meet of the year. It was their championship against the surrounding schools. Although Stan was quite good, their team was not good enough to make any regional or state meet.

"You ready buddy?" Clyde stretched next to him. They were on the relay together, along with two seniors. It was the last event of the meet. Right now they were tied with North Park. If they won, they would be able to take the championship for the first time ever.

"Of course I am." Stan was the anchor. It was his favorite thing to do; the glory of crossing the finishing line was the best part of track.

The teams got into position and the gun shot off. By the time Clyde got to Stan, South Park was slightly behind. Time to finish this once and for all, Stan thought as he grabbed the baton. Soon he was even with the boy from North Park, then he passed him. They had won it all for the first time! Smiling, Stan's eyes scanned the crowd, looking for Rebecca. He was disheartened to see she had not made it to the meet. Wendy would be here, he thought to himself.

Wendy had not reacted the way he thought she would to his cheating. He had expected the anger, but he thought she would want to talk about it for hours and hours until it was beat into the ground and they were back together. Instead, she had been ignoring him completely, and inexplicably hanging out with Craig Tucker. What was up with that? They had dated for 7 years and she wouldn't even look at him in the hallways. I could have done something so much worse, this was just a small mistake. He felt annoyed at himself for even getting distracted by this, he just won state for his team! This was a night to party!

At the party

Stan sat in a couch, next to Kyle. This was the drunkest he had ever gotten. He looked over at Rebecca. She was holding onto Heidi, giggling about something. Heidi pulled Rebecca over to get some more shots. Stan sighed.

"Don't Stan" Kyle said as he sipped on a beer. Normally he would get as wasted as his friends, but he had a ton of homework to do later.

"What?" Stan replied almost angrily. He looked at Stan, tearing his eyes away from Bebe, Nicole, and Lola who just walked in. Since when are they friends with her? he thought disdainfully.

"Stan, stop romantizing what you had with Wendy. You really didn't have anything with her; you guys were just together out of habit. Now you have a new girlfriend. Just get over it gosh, she was sort of a bitch anyway."

"You're just bitter because for some reason, you decided to like Cartman."

"I'm not kidding Stan. I don't want to hear you bitch about Wendy now. No one likes hearing about how she won't give it to you, or how she's not letting you copy off her or any of that. You're just mad that Craig's trying to get with her. You are in high school. You have a hot girlfriend who actually gives it to you and is easier to get along with. Just relax and enjoy yourself. Jesus its not that serious." Kyle sighed and rolled his eyes. How could his friend not be happy? He complained enough about Wendy that it seemed like he would be happy they weren't together.

"Maybe you're right. It's not that serious." Stan stood up abruptly and started making his way towards Rebecca. Heidi had been flirting with Kenny and he had dragged her to the bedroom, with her giggling loudly the entire way. At first, Stan wondered why she would want to draw attention to this, but then he looked across the room at an angry Lola. That made more sense.

Rebecca was swaying on the side, watching her friend. "Babe lets go" Stan grabbed Rebeccas hand and pulled her towards the door.

"Stan, your parents aren't home right?" Rebecca whispered in his ear.

"Nope, they aren't" Stan grinned at her as they made their way towards his house. Kyle was right. Sure, his relationship with Rebecca was different than that with Wendy, but it wasn't worse. Just different.

"Craig you actually got all of these right! I think we are making real progress here….hold on, Lola is calling me"

Craig could hear sobbing on the other end of the phone. He made out the words drunk and Kenny but otherwise all he heard was yelling and noise.

"Don't worry, we will get you! I will be there in 10 minutes." Wendy hung up and looked at Craig, opening her mouth.

"I can drive." Wendy just smiled at Craig and grabbed her coat. She was beginning to really rely on him. It might have been difficult to go alone, not so much because she was still hurt, but because it was just humiliating.

Craig pulled up to Kenny's house. Wendy jumped out of the passenger side door.

"Ill grab the girls and I will be right back" Wendy called over her shoulder as she ran towards the door. "Oof!"

Not watching where she was going, Wendy ran right into Rebecca in their way out from the party. The two were walking back to Stan's place after the party.

"Watchwhereyou'regoingbitch" Rebecca slurred as she grabbed onto Stan's arm, who didn't look entirely steady himself.

"Oh, um sorry" Wendy caught the insult within the slur, and would have loved to respond, but she was too busy trying to duck out of the way of Stan, not wanting to make eye contact.

"Wendywendywaitup" Stan let go of Rebecca and followed her into the house. Rebecca tried to follow but she puked on the stairs instead. Craig's grip on the steering wheel tightened. After a minute of indecision, he cut the motor and ran inside.

When he entered the party, house music thudded so hard his chest shook. It's a miracle the cops haven't been called yet, he shook his head to himself. He looked around the party. Lola was crying, being comforted by Bebe and Nicole. They all seemed pretty smashed. Token and Clyde were singing in another corner, arms around eachother. Then he saw Wendy. Stan was grabbing her arm, trying to drag her to a couch.

"Stan! I didn't come here to see you; I am picking up Lola and leaving! Let me go!"

"Wendy come on! Youresoimmature, I just want to talk!" Stan seemed to be somewhat in control of his senses, however he did not loosen his grip on Wendy's arm. Craig walked over, furious.

"Let her go, Marsh" Craig snarled at Stan. Wendy looked up at Craig, almost frightened by the way his face was transformed by anger. She had left before he and Stan fought last time, and didn't get to see him like this.

"Soyourewith him, Wendy? Really? After everything we have been through? "Stan spat as he released Wendy.

Craig looked like he was going to pop a vein at that . "Marsh I swear I will fuck your shit up." He then looked over at Wendy, who looked terrified of him. His heart dropped at her face. He sighed, trying to release the anger he held.

"Here Wendy, we can grab your friends and…oof!" Craig went sprawling to the floor. When he had turned around he saw Stan looking at him victoriously. "Notsofuckingtough now Tucker" Obviously Stan had still harbored some hard feelings about the homecoming feelings.

"YOU COWARD!" Both boys turned, feeling surprised. Wendy had an angry glint in her eyes that made both boys tremble; even though they were about ready to kill eachother two seconds ago. It reminded Craig of the day Wendy finally lost it and beat the crap out of Cartman at the playground. If I could beat up Cartman and not get in trouble, I would be so happy.

Stan went tumbling backwards as Wendy rabbit punched him directly in the jaw. "WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU! HITTING SOMEONE FROM BEHIND!" She punched him again with a left hook. The people from the party started to turn and stare.

"Wendy, we should get your friends home."Craig whispered, and cringed when Wendy turned her angry gaze onto him.

"I was busy!" she shot another glare at Stan, who cowered at her look. Wendy sighed and regressed into a more normal state. "Alright Lola, Bebe, Nicole, we are taking you home."

Wendy's display of anger surprised the girls so much Lola stopped crying. They obediently filed into Craig's car, with Wendy bringing up the rear. Wendy saw Rebecca, still vomiting in front of the house. She felt a pang of pity, no one should be abandoned when they are in that state. Rebecca was barely conscious, she didn't even realize it was Wendy who was leading her inside. Wendy lay her on her side on the floor. She looked up at Stan, who was watching her warily, and with a bit of sadness.

"Listen Stan, you need to look out for her now. Make sure she doesn't vomit; keep an eye on her." Wendy walked out, going back to the car.

"Wendy, I'm sorry." She couldn't help it, she turned around.

"I know I messed up, and I know its over. I just couldn't accept it. I'm sorry." Tears were forming in Stan's eyes, he was still slightly drunk but she could hear the sincerity in his voice. Maybe it was immature to deny him that.

She gave him a soft smile, conveying forgiveness and walked out. So now it was finally over.

Getting the girls home was fairly easy. They were drunk but sensible enough to keep quiet while Wendy got them into their homes. Soon, it was time to take Wendy back as well. Craig drove up to her driveway and looked at her.

"You ok?"

"Yeah, I'm not quite sure what happened back there. Sorry about that."

"Don't be sorry, I know what happened."

"What?"

"You finally let loose and showed a piece of your real personality. You have some crazy in you, Wendy." Craig smirked at the last comment.

"Oh hush Craig." Wendy rolled her eyes but couldn't conceal a smile. Maybe she had repressed herself a bit.

"It's alright, I like crazy." Craig winked at Wendy as she got out of the car. To her surprise, she blushed.

"Whatever, Craig" Wendy got out of the car and headed into her house. "Thanks for everything"

"Whatever, Wendy" Craig felt so stupid but he had a huge grin on his face. He pulled out of her driveway, and started his way home.


	13. Chapter 13

I don't own south park.

Chapter 13

Sunday was spent with Lola, just baking cookies, painting nails and talking. Red joined a bit later as well. Bebe and Nicole were invited but they needed to rest; they were still pretty sick. Sometimes it was nice to relax and forget about everything. But sure enough, their talk always turned to work, school, and math team.

"State is coming up soon, Wendy! Aren't you excited?" Red was very tempted to gush to the girls about how things were going with Tweek but she knew it would be insensitive, seeing what happened to Lola. She kept turning the conversation away from guys.

"Yeah Wendy! Do you think we could win anything?"

"Probably not" Wendy laughed as she painted her nails. "The fact that we made it is more than anything! I just want us to have a good time, and do our best."

"That doesn't sound like you at all, Wendy." Lola said as she carefully painted a flower on her thumbnail. "But I guess you're right. We have so much to worry about with finals anyway."

"Anyway Red, what do you think about Tweek? I've seen you guys talking more than usual" Even though things weren't working out for her, she still wanted to support Red. They were best friends, after all.

"We actually went on a date Saturday night!" Red blushed just thinking of it. "We started the night out at his coffee place, then he took me to a movie. Afterwards we went to Stark's Pond and he put his arm around me and…"

Listening to Red's excited retelling of her date with Tweek made Wendy smile. She felt a twinge of guilt; she was so caught up in her own problems with Stan that she had completely forgotten about Red's budding relationship.

"…afterwards he asked me to be his girlfriend and I said yes! So now I have my first boyfriend!" Red gushed, eyes sparkling at both of her friends. For most of her friendship with Wendy and Lola, Wendy had been the one with the boyfriend. And now, it was her! She knew she was the most awkward of her friends; she never imagined herself being in a relationship while her friends were not.

"Red, that's awesome! I just wish we could have picked out an outfit with you" Wendy mused as she braided Red's hair.

"Actually maybe it was a good thing…" Red pointedly looked at Wendy's outfit of a tank top and sweatpants.

"Oh shut up!" Lola threw some popcorn at Red and the girls broke into giggles.

Soon Sunday was over and the girls were back to their usual routines. On Wednesday, they talked as they went on their way to lunch sans Wendy. Red sat next to Tweek, smiling at him. Tweek smiled back, but he shook as he did so and glanced away quickly.

"Where's Wendy? She hasn't been coming to lunch recently." Craig tried to appear as unconcerned as possible, but Lola saw right through him.

"In the library. She's been skipping lunch to study. I think shes sorta stressed out because of finals and math team."

Wordlessly, Craig stood up, taking his unfinished lunch with him. As he threw out his garbage and headed up the stairs towards the library, his friends watched him.

"I wonder when he's gonna ask her out" Token asked Clyde quietly.

Wendy was reading through To Kill A Mockingbird intently, highlighting different sections and taking notes on the book when someone sat down next to her. She looked up.

"Oh hi Craig, what's up?"

"Wendy, you can't skip lunch because you are stressed. That's not going to help you feel better."

"Craig, I have to do this." Wendy sighed. "Next week everything is going to be over. And I don't even have a job or anything for break!"

"Wendy, you have been studying for weeks. Stressing yourself out isn't going to help you perform your best. You need to relax to help prepare for the competition and the exams."

"I relaxed this weekend! If I don't study now I am just going to let myself down and everyone else!"

"You studied this weekend as well. Tonight I will help you relax."

"How?" Even though Wendy fully meant to reject any offer Craig had to distract her from studying, she was curious.

"Wendy do you have a fake id?"

That was one of the last things she was expecting him to say.

"Actually yes…Bebe made me get one sophomore year. I've never used it but its actually pretty good."

"Figures, you would have a great fake and not use it" Craig gave her a half smile.

"Come to The Dime in Denver at 9".

"Craig! What is this about? Are you going to meet me there?"

"You will see. Just be there. Make sure you dress up, if you look too young they might not let you in. Also leave your hair curly." Craig had not seen her curls since that one fateful day in the music hall, and he was looking forward to see more.

"So let me get this straight. You want me to show up to a bar alone in Denver where you may or may not meet me there."

"Basically. I will see you there"

Craig walked away without another word, knowing that Wendy would show up.

Later that Day

Wendy sighed as she applied some makeup. She couldn't believe she was doing this! Showing up alone to a bar she had never been to before…really it was irresponsible for her to even consider doing it. And yet, here she was getting ready for the night.

Red and Lola had been asking Wendy for a study session for math team tonight but she had rejected them. Bebe had also asked Wendy if she would tutor her in math tonight, but she also told Bebe she was busy. Both groups of girls thought Wendy just needed time to study and work on her own. The thought of telling them about her going to the bar in Denver crossed her mind a few times (it would definitely be safer) but she decided against it. It was exciting, it was a fun secret, and for some reason her heart fluttered at the thought of it.

"See you later Mom" Wendy called as she went to her car. She had never drank before and didn't intend to on this mystery night.

She arrived to the bar at exactly 9. Wendy was known for being prompt. The bouncer let her in no problem after seeing her id, although he did give her a strange look. When she walked in she gasped.

The attendees of the bar were older guys who just wanted to drink a beer and talk around. They looked up, surprised to see a young girl like Wendy there. But that wasn't what she gasped at.

Craig was sitting on stage in front of a beat up brown piano. He was wearing a navy t-shirt and black jeans, complete with converse. He had some contraption around his neck attached to his harmonica as well. When he saw her walk in, he smiled.

"The guest of honor has arrived! Take your seat over here Wendy" he gestured toward a seat in the front. Unlike the other tables, this one had a tablecloth put over it and a vase with a single red rose in it. Wendy went and took the seat, honestly in shock of the entire situation.

"And now to start off Piano Man!" Craig yelled to the cheers of the crowd. And he began to play. He was playing the piano and his harmonica at the same time.

"It's nine o'clock on a Saturday

The regular crowd shuffles in

There's an old man sitting next to me

Making love to his tonic and gin"

At this point, he gestured towards an elderly gentleman sitting close to Wendy. The crowd roared with laughter, and they sang along with Craig. Clearly they loved this night and Craig as well.

Wendy couldn't help but be shocked. She could tell Craig liked music that night in the music hall and at the jazz concert, but once again she got to experience a completely different side of him through it. Craig could make that piano sing almost as well as he could. And boy could he sing! His voice was a clear tenor and had such emotion ring through it that no one would suspect of the usually monotone, quiet boy. The music transformed a introverted boy into a beloved star. She wondered how many other people from school had heard him sing.

"And the waitress is practicing politics

As the businessmen slowly get stoned

Yes they're sharing a drink they call loneliness

But it's better than drinking alone"

Wendy looked down at the glass of soda sitting by her side and sighed. Screw this, she thought. I deserve to have fun. Besides, Craig isn't drinking anything. He can help me get back. She was sitting right by the bar, and gestured to the bar tender.

"What would you like miss"

"Um…just a rum and coke please"

When her family went out places, that was usually what her mom got, She figured she would like it too.

"How much?"

"On the house miss. Craig earns us so much money this night, it's the least we could do for his little lady." The barman gave her a friendly wink as he slid her drink to her.

Wendy blushed but didn't correct him. The thought of being Craig's little lady didn't necessarily bother her…

Craig soon started into a faster song. Wendy was not familiar with Billy Joel at all but she was enjoying herself immensely nonetheless.

"Ohmygosh this is from Oliver!" She was not expecting to recognize any of the songs he would play tonight.

"Why should I worry, why should I care!" She sang along with the rest of the bar, truly enjoying herself.

Craig noticed Wendy was having a good time and he smiled to himself. The thought of inviting her here, something absolutely no one knew that he did, scared him a bit. But it seemed to be working out well, she was having fun and had forgotten about Stan for a few moments.

He started into the next song. Wendy looked around, shocked that although the song seemed to be a continuous barrage of random words, that EVERYONE here knew the words! She just giggled and listened, she had ordered her second rum and coke and it was starting to get to her.

"Now, it's time for an old favorite!" The crowd cheered as he checked in on Wendy. He had been playing for a while now and she had gotten quite drunk. He noticed that she was on her 5th rum and coke. Well well, look at our class president now, he smiled. Looks like she finally learned to relax a bit.

"Uptown girl

She's been living in her uptown world

I bet she never had a backstreet guy

I bet her mama never told her why"

The bar had noticed by this point that he was singing to Wendy. He was definitely putting more emotion into some of the songs, influenced by her presence. This only made them even more excited, and they got into the song even more with him. On her part, Wendy was pretty drunk and was mostly just enjoying her night.

"And when she's walking

She's looking so fine

And when she's talking

She'll say that she's mine"

She made eye contact Craig for the last line, and laughed as he wiggled his eyebrows at her. Wow I really did not expect this to be so fun!

He started to slow it down.

"Anthony works in the grocery store

Savin' his pennies for someday"

He glanced at Wendy as he sang, She was nodding along to the music, holding her hand in the air and waving it like she was holding a lighter, even though she wasn't. He smiled and continued.

"Time to close the night out fellas. Hope you all had a great night" He took a deep breath and started to sing. This music transformed him differently than the rest of the night. Before, his confidence had taken a huge jump, and he had become a charismatic extrovert. Now, he was exposing a soft side to himself to Wendy and the rest of the bar.

"Don't go trying some new fashion

Don't change the color of your hair

You always have my unspoken passion

Although I might not seem to care"

Again he made eye contact with a drunk Wendy. Then, his sight dropped to her long curls on either side of her head, wild and free. For a moment, clarity entered her mind.

He is singing directly to me.

"I just want someone, that I can talk to.

I love you just the way you are."

This is the only way I could ever tell her how I feel, Craig realized with a pang.

After the Bar

Craig drove Wendy home in her car. She was all giggles the way home.

"Craig, why did it take so long for you to sing for me?!"

"It just wasn't the right time before"

'Well this was the perfect time. You have an amazing voice! And you played the harmonica at the same time as the piano! Can you play any other instruments?"

"Sure I can" Craig grinned at her fron the drivers seat.

"What else?!"

"You'll find out in time"

"Aghhhhhh" Wendy started kicking in front of her in frustration.

"Wendy don't kick your own car" Craig laughed. "We're almost home"

"How are you getting back?"

"I can walk, I don't live far"

They stepped out of the car. Craig walked her to the door. Despite her drunkenness, she seemed like she would be able to make it to her room all right.

"Craig I think that was the most fun I have ever had. Thank you so so so much, you are the best." Wendy rose up on her tip toes and kissed Craig on the cheek before she walked in.

I love you, Wendy.

The words rose to the tip of his tongue but he couldn't bring himself to utter them.

Craig blushed furiously. He raised his hand and touched the spot on his cheek where Wendy kissed him.

_Because your kiss, your kiss_

_Is on my list_

_Because your kiss, your kiss_

_Is on my list_

_Because your kiss is on my list_

_Of the best things in life_

He hummed quietly to himself as he walked back to his house. This night really turned out much better than I could have dreamed.


	14. Chapter 14

Thank you for kind messages and everything! I appreciate it! Just a reminder that I don't own south park.

Chapter 14

Wendy woke up to a loudly buzzing alarm, groaning. Her head pounded as she fumbled with her phone. Experiencing her first hangover right before finals week was not ideal for her at all. At least she wasn't throwing up.

She decided to skip the morning run today, grabbing her phone to send Craig a quick text.

Hey I'm definitely not going to run today…

that's fine, see u in school

She smiled faintly at the message, and then winced as she grabbed her pounding head. Perhaps a shower would make her feel better.

Craig also smiled at the text message Wendy sent him. Seeing her have such a good time was really nice. He didn't think of it as a first date; just sharing another part of his life with a girl he loved.

After her shower, Wendy blew out her hair and straightened it. She took her time doing her makeup, taking pains to cover her baggy eyes. Well, I guess that is the best I could do. It is gonna be a long day.

Wendy chugged a water bottle and took two aspirin as she headed out to school.

On the way to school, all Wendy could think about was her night with Craig. Was it a date? The way the table was decorated, she would think so. But he barely talked to her the entire night. That didn't seem very much like a date…but more importantly, did she want it to be? A warm blush rose in her cheeks at the thought of dating Craig. She wasn't sure if it was from embarrassment or pleasure. Her issues with Stan had distanced her from Bebe originally, and she thought of the other distractions it had brought with it as well. Maybe it's time to just focus on myself, work on becoming self-actualized. Wendy wasn't sure how ready she was to open up her heart to new possibilities. Soon, she was arriving at the school.

Walking in, she noticed Bebe right away.

"Wendy!" Bebe ran up to her. "You're hung over!"

"What!" Wendy gasped, pulling out her phone to look at herself. "I thought I hid it with my makeup!"

"I know what the day after a party looks like" Bebe giggled. "You look fine! But what the hell were you doing on a Wednesday night?"

"Um.." On one hand, Wendy really, really wanted to confide in someone what had happened. But she felt as if it was her and Craig's secret, and wasn't sure if she could trust Bebe to keep it to herself.

Bebe followed Wendy's eyes to Craig as he walked into school, giving Wendy a smile, which she returned. Bebe smiled mischievously, and didn't ask Wendy any more questions about it.

"Wendy, what are you doing during break?"

"No idea." Wendy sighed. "That's another thing I have to worry about. I need to do something productive!"

"Work with me! My auntie has a catering business that is hopping during break. Its really hard but cute girls get tipped nicely. It will be fun to work together! Maybe we can even save up for a trip this summer or something."

"Awesome! Yeah sure I would love to!" Wendy smiled; at least one thing was off her mind!

The girls continued to talk as they walked towards their first class and the day continued without incident.

During lunch, Wendy had asked Craig if he wanted to join Lola, Red and her as they studied math and history (those were their first two exams as well as to prepare for the math team competition on Saturday). Craig had to say no as he was busy. Wendy tried to play it off like it was no big deal, but she felt a slight disappointment. She could have sworn she saw a fleeting look of disappointment on Craig's face as well, but she wasn't sure. She was getting better at reading his usually monotone facial expressions, but wasn't confident in it yet.

The truth was that Craig was extremely disappointed. Last night was a dream come true for him. Slowly but surely, he was sharing more personal parts of his life with Wendy, and it was going better than he expected. But some things are just more important.

As he arrived home, his sister greeted him. She usually got home faster because she grabbed a ride with friends while her brother preferred to walk.

"Hello Craig. Mrs. Anderson and Fillmore should be over soon, you better get prepared."

Craig put his backpack in the kitchen and walked over to the piano they had in their living room. It was a gift from his grandmother when Ruby turned 5. It was the same piano his mother had first taken lessons on when she was a little girl. His grandmother wanted to give Ruby and Craig a chance to experience music just like she had. He could remember the day like it was yesterday.

Flashback

"It's fine for Ruby, but damnit Linda our son will not be some fucking pansy! I do NOT want him to play that thing. If he does I'm putting it on the street for the Mexicans to take."

She had begged him to keep the piano in the first place; it was one of her dearest possessions. Initially she accepted this agreement, teaching Ruby how to play when her father was around. But Craig was curious, and would teach himself a little each time, making sure to be playing with his red racer in the room while his mother taught his sister. When his father was out at the local bar, he would practice with his mother, soon surpassing both his mother and sister in the skill. It was a miracle his father never caught him at it.

As the years went on, Ruby continued to play and take lessons from her mother, even though she didn't like it as much as her brother. She knew that if she didn't play, her father would throw the piano away, hurting both her mother and brother. So she continued to feign interest in it until her father was gone for good. She and Craig never discussed it, but he was eternally grateful to her for making that small sacrifice for him. Not many people would guess it, but he was probably closer to his younger sister than anyone else in the world.

Soon, a knock at the door removed Craig from his memories. He went to open the door.

"Hi Fillmore, Hi Mrs. Anderson, please come in." He led them into his living room.

"Hello Craig, good to see you." Mrs Anderson smiled at Craig. She sat down in a couch and made herself comfortable, opening up a magazine she had brought.

.

"Hey Filmore, did you practice the scale I taught you?"

"Yeah but scales are so boring" the kindergartener whined

"Well if you want to play fun things, you have to start there. Go through it once and we can start the Super Mario Theme song today"

And the 30 minutes came and went. Craig wasn't the biggest fan of teaching young children, but money was money. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, he had started giving piano lessons outside of his home. Initially, parents were suspicious of a high school boy teaching their children piano, but Ruby had talked him up at the day care center she volunteered at (she loved children) and had convinced some parents to try it out. To their surprise, Craig was actually a great teacher. He seemed to know what songs to teach the children to keep them interested in the piano while sneaking in some scales and other not as fun exercises. He also was clearly not someone who the kids could manipulate with whining, tantrums, or other things, so most of them didn't even try.

"Thanks for everything, Craig."Mrs. Anderson beamed as she handed Craig 20 dollars. "I think he is really getting better."

"Bye Craig!" Filmore shouted as he and his mother left.

"Bye, have a good day" Shoot. Craig slumped in the couch, waiting for his next appointment. Only 2 more to go. It could be worse.

After everything was said and done, he had made 317 dollars that week with his bar appearance and piano lessons. Pretty good for a high schooler, he thought proudly to himself.

He heard the key turn in the door. His mother walked in from work. She worked in HR for the local Wal-Mart, which as you could imagine was a complete nightmare. She had been taking extra hours recently but was home pretty early today.

"Hi Mom, I made dinner for us," Ruby had helped her mother around the kitchen since she was young. She brought out three chicken breasts, with steamed veggies on the side. She kept them eating healthy.

"Thanks Ruby! This looks great," Linda was surprisingly expressive, more so than you would guess from her two children. She had learned to dull her personality from being with her husband, and since he had left, she was slowly becoming herself again.

The family sat down to eat, with Ruby and her mother talking a bit about school. Craig was usually quiet during dinner, just enjoying his mother and sister discussing their day.

"Hey Mom I'm done, can I borrow your car to get some stuff done?"

"Sure Craig. Just be back before midnight and be careful!"

"Right. See you."

Craig put the key in the ignition and took a look at the gas. Near empty. Well at least he knew where to start. He drove the car to the local station and filled up his mom's tank with 40 bucks. Then, he took a drive to the local Costco. He had gotten himself a membership there; it was easier to get a ton of stuff for cheap that way.

He hummed as he walked through the aisles, looking at the list he made on his phone.

Let's see, Ruby likes those bags of veggies. I need to grab some cereal. Oh, and we are almost out of milk. Toilet paper was running low, and I think we needed more hand soap…..

He received a text on his phone from Ruby.

Please pick up some tomatoes as well! I want to make salad tomorrow. thanks! 3

sure np

As he was texting, he accidentally ran his cart into a man with red hair.

"Come on kid, watch where you're going." The man rolled his eyes as Craig mumbled an apology and skittered away, looking for tomatoes.

After he found everything he needed, he paused in the sweets section. Ruby always tried to keep the family eating healthy, but he knew that she loved ice cream as well. He picked out a pint of chocolate peanut butter, her favorite flavor. After, he went to the cashier to make his final purchase. His mother would never accept money from Craig, she was too proud. So he did what he could to help around the house, always "borrowing" his mom's car when he knew she was low on gas, picking up things they needed around the house. It wasn't much, but he did what he could.

On Friday after school, the math team loaded up on a bus headed toward Boulder. Their competition was at the university. Wendy took attendance as the bus loaded up. She was not surprised to see Cartman sitting with Butters. The fact that Cartman followed Butters to competitions was generally accepted now. In fact, he was looked at as a sort of a mascot for them. If you had told Wendy in the fourth grade that Cartman would turn out to be a mascot for the math team supporting his boyfriend Butters, she would have laughed in your face.

The girls, Butters, and Cartman took out their DSs to pass away the long trip. Wendy went towards the back to a troubled looking Craig. She immediately got concerned; was his father back or had something worse happened?

"Craig, are you alright? You seem troubled." Did she really just say troubled? Jesus, that was lame.

Craig turned towards her with a pained expression.

"Butters and I are the only dudes on the team right? So clearly we are gonna be roommates. Where do you think Cartman is gonna stay tonight? Jeez I didn't sign up for this," Craig muttered as he pulled his blue chullo over his eyes.

For a moment Wendy was silent. Then she exploded into laughter, drawing glances from the others on the team.

"Keep it down hoe! I just got a blue shell! Hahahah fuck you Lola!"

Lola groaned as the shell destroyed her. "Damnit Cartman, that's such a cheap way to win! We're playing again, except this time on rainbow road!"

"It's not funny," Craig mumbled with a half smile, amused at her reaction.

"We will cross that bridge when we get there, don't worry about it." Wendy shivered as she imagined sharing a room with Butters and Cartman. She was happy for them, but honestly that was the stuff of nightmares. "You won't get stuck in a room with a couple, I promise."

The bus ride was pretty long, almost 5 hours. Wendy chatted with Craig for a bit on the way there, and soon decided to nap. She lay down across her seat and fell asleep with hear ear buds in. Craig's eyes traced her relaxed figure, starting with the shape of her face and traveling down towards her curves all the way to her legs. It seemed like she wasn't ready to talk about what had happened Wednesday night and what it meant for their relationship. Good. I was never really good at that anyway. If it was meant to be, it will be. Craig could see she was growing feelings for him. But he was not one to force anything; he was willing to wait until she was ready. Completely unconcerned, Craig plugged his ear buds in as well, and slowly drifted off to the sounds of Chopin dancing around in his head.


	15. Chapter 15

Just wanted to say thank you for the kind reviews, they really do make my day I am so sorry that I don't do it every time I get one; it just slips my mind sometimes. But don't think that I don't appreciate it! The support I have gotten with this story has made me push through working long hours and studying to update as soon as I can instead of just going to sleep it has turned into so much more than a writing exercise for me and I wanted to thank you all for that.

There also seems to be a point of confusion that I would like to clear up. In my story, Stan is not abused. I apologize if I ever wrote anything to give you that idea.

I do not own South Park or any of its characters.

Chapter 15

Wendy groggily woke up on the bus, realizing they had come to a stop. She looked out the window as the rest of her classmates began to stir. It was about 8:30 pm. All of their competitions were on Saturday, and they were leaving that day at night. She felt a jolt as she fully realized it. They were there! This was what she was working for all semester; now she finally got the chance to show what she and her team were made of.

Soon everyone was off the bus and in the hotel lobby. Mr. Johnson, their math teacher, started handing out the room keys. Wendy got her key and looked up at Craig, seeing the clear distress in his eyes as he and Butters took their keys out of the package. What can I do about this situation? Wendy fought the urge to smile; sure it was funny but she was trying not to laugh at other people's pain. Coming between Cartman and Butters was a bad idea…she was not afraid of Cartman but she knew what he was capable of. But how could she rescue Craig from this situation? It seemed like there was only one way, which she was quite reluctant to do.

"Butters, Cartman, come here" Wendy motioned for the pair to join her. Craig came along as well.

"What do you want, hoe? You can't stop me and Butters from staying in the same room to save your faggy boyfriend," Cartman huffed as he looked at Wendy.

"I'm offering a trade," Wendy held up her room key. "I get my own room with a large TV and king size bed. I will trade with you on two conditions. ONE; you cannot under any circumstances order ANY room service! And two; this stays between us. We all can get in serious trouble if they find out we switched rooms."

"Wendy are you seriously?" Cartman grabbed the room key out of her hand. "Dumb bitch heheh. Come on Butters, lets go!" He threw their room key after them as they ran off, slapping Butters butt on their way.

Wendy shook her head, blushing at the implication of what Butters and Cartman were planning to do in their room tonight. She looked up at Craig.

"Well guess we are roommates tonight," she joked nervously. I hope he doesn't think I am doing this to have sex or anything…I don't want to hook up! Oh god I really hope he doesn't expect that. What did I just do?

Similar thoughts were racing through Craig's mind. Of course, he wanted to hook up with her. But he knew they were nowhere close to that point, and the last thing he wanted to do was ruin the fragile understanding they had seemed to reach. Although difficult to read himself Craig could usually tell what other people were thinking, especially Wendy.

"Come on Wendy! We're gonna grab dinner then we want to chill. Lets go to Shakey's!"

The four of them headed out to grab a burger. After, Red and Lola started walking back towards the hotel.

"Come on, guys. It's our first time in Boulder! Let's explore a little!" Wendy's enthusiasm surprised Lola and Red a bit.

"But Wendy, we are not supposed to be out late…we might get in trouble!"

"Mr. Johnson won't notice. Just a short walk, then we can go back."

The group took a tour around the campus. It was pretty dark; so they could not see anything perfectly. But Wendy was still amazed. She had visited a few colleges nearby, but they were small and private schools. Originally she thought she might like that better. Even though there were no students on campus, she loved the size of it and felt comfortable. Wow, I am definitely going to apply here!

After they finished their walk, they all bid each other goodnight. Wendy quietly made her way to the bathroom, bringing everything she needed with her. She showered and changed into her pajamas, cringing at the tank top and shorts she had brought. Really wish I grabbed a t-shirt instead right now. Well I guess I have ran in less than this.

Wendy walked out to her bed. Craig had already made himself comfortable on the other bed, staring up at the ceiling.

"Craig…." He had been waiting for this.

"Wendy, don't worry about it."

"You're not even looking at me Craig. How do you know I am worried?"

"I don't have to look at you to know you're worried, Wendy." He glanced at her with a half smile. I'll wait for you.

Wendy returned the smile. She wasn't completely sure about her feelings still. The flutters in her stomach when Craig looked at her could be from anything, right? There was just too much going on now. All she knew was that she relied on this boy. He meant a lot to her and she couldn't risk ruining their friendship because she wasn't sure if she was ready for a relationship. Funny how they grew up together and she barely knew him until earlier this year.

Somehow their brief conversation made her feel better. There was an understanding between them. Even though Craig was just staring up at the ceiling, she could feel a connection between them. I can trust him. He's here for me. And I'm here for him. We can just see what else happens.

Smiling, Wendy fell asleep, untroubled.

The next morning the team woke up, ready for the day's competitions. Wendy was extremely nervous. This was what she had been working for, and it all came to this one day. It was a pretty long day of math for the team. While taking the exam, Wendy wasn't even thinking of winning or Craig or anything else. All she was thinking about was how to solve each problem. She loved that freeing feeling. Right now, the only thing that mattered was the problem before her. When the competition was over, the entire team was exhausted except for Cartman, who spent the day napping in his king sized bed.

When the results finally came out, the team excitedly huddled around the list of teams, searching for South Park High on that list. Looking lower and lower down the list, their name finally appeared. Lola and Red looked at each other, not sure how Wendy would take the news.

"We got the top 50%?"

Butters nervously looked at Craig and the girls. None of them were quite prepared for another outburst from Wendy.

"WE GOT THE TOP 50% ! Why aren't you guys celebrating?!" Wendy screamed as she threw the paper in the air. The rest of the team relaxed at her attitude, and started to laugh.

"Gee Wendy, I guess 50% is pretty good for a team that never made it before huh?"

"Of course! I am so proud of you guys." Wendy beamed at all of them. "We made South Park history!"

Craig smiled, not only at Wendy's obvious happiness but his own. He had been a part of history! Sure it was a small part but he had accomplished something, been a part of something. Something academic at that, quite an accomplishment for a c student. And it was thanks to Wendy. Usually he just flew under the radar as much as he could get away with. Never did he imagine he would be here. He saw her hugging her friends and jumping in excitement. Before she was just an unrequited love. Things were different now. How could one person make such an impact on him?

Soon they were loading up on the bus to leave. Despite their initial excitement, the team eventually quieted down and everyone settled down for a nap. Butters cuddled up against Cartman, a satisfied smile on his face.

Well I'm glad I don't know exactly what happened between them this weekend.

Wendy had curled up in her bus seat and she was snoozing away. He looked at her for a moment, then went to sleep himself.

Soon they were back in South Park. Wendy stepped into Craig's car as they left the high school. Exhausted, they did not speak much in the car. When they got to Wendy's house, she simply smiled and waved goodbye to Craig, who gave a small half smile in return as he shifted the gears in his car to head home.

Humming, he made the turn onto his block. One look at his house and he was silenced immediately. His face drained of color. In his driveway was his father's white Sudan.


End file.
